Impeachment is Not Just a ‘Numbers Game’

By Herbert Vego

NO less than the newly-elected senators are spreading the perception that the forthcoming impeachment trial of Vice President Sara Duterte is a “numbers game” where they, in their dual role as senator judges, may decide to convict or acquit her as they wish.

Sen. Ronald “Bato” dela Rosa, for example, predicted that more than nine senators would acquit VP Sara.

The odds in that possibility would tilt the trial in her favor, since it would take two-thirds or 16 of the 24 senators to convict her. Therefore, she needs only nine votes to win acquittal.

“I am confident of an acquittal,” he said, “because we are seeing our non-allies changing their stand.”

That, unfortunately, would be tantamount to a mockery of justice. It would defeat the purpose of the impeachment complaint. As defined, the impeachment is a process by which a legislative body hears charges against a public official for misconduct.

Therefore, it should not be decided by the tyranny of numbers, but by the weight of evidence presented during trial.

A conviction would dismiss the vice-president from her post and ban her from occupying any public office henceforth.

Have we elected the right senators who would judge in accordance with due process?

Anyway, having elected 12 new senators to join the 12 holdover ones on July 1, we brace ourselves for the next TV spectacle to unfold before our eyes: the impeachment trial of Vice President Sara Duterte in the Senate.

During the  Senate trial, prosecutors assigned by the House of Representatives would argue the case based on the issues against her, such are her failure to account for the public funds she spent, her alleged ill-gotten wealth, and her public threats against President Ferdinand Marcos Jr., First Lady Liza and Speaker Martin Romualdez.

Assuming the senator-judges rule on political and personal grounds, then her acquittal would be a walk in the park.

Barring political alliance, however, the senators could render judgment based on the rule of law to be laid down by prosecutors coming from the House of Representatives. They could cross party lines in accordance with their conscience.

Meanwhile, take note that nine of the 12 newly elected senators — Bam Aquino, Francis Pangilinan, Erwin Tulfo, Lito Lapid, Ping Lacson, Vicente Sotto III, Pia Cayetano, Camille Villar and Imee Marcos – ran under the President’s multi-party alliance, the Alyansa Para sa Bagong Pilipinas.

Only three of the “Dutertens” orf the 10 senatorial bets publicly identified as Duterte allies – Bong Go, Ronald “Bato” Dela Rosa and Rodante Marcoleta – made it.  But it does not mean that only these three have already decided to take the side of Inday Sara.

There are four Alyansa winners — Lacson, Sotto, Cayetano, Villar and Imee Marcos – who are rumored to have pledged their support for Inday Sara.  If true, then seven of the 12 new senators might acquit Sara.  She would need only two more from the 12 holdover senators (those elected in 2022) to retain the vice-presidency.

The holdover senators are Jinggoy Estrada, JV Ejercito, Mark Villar, Alan Peter Cayetano, Raffy Tulfo, Loren Legarda, Win Gatchalian, Chiz Escudero, Robin Padilla, Joel Villanueva, Risa Hontiveros and Juan Miguel “Migz” Zubiri.

Among these 12 “holdovers,” it is easy to see at least four “friends” of VP Sara.  So, since 7 plus 4 equals 11, are we to say that her acquittal would be rendered without “bloodbath”?

VP Sara had vaguely threatened a “bloodbath” during the impeachment trial.

An acquittal would qualify her to run for president in 2028.  Right?

Nay, not so, since a twist of fate could derail her political journey because of the looming trial of her dad, former President Rodrigo “Digong” Duterte, at the International Criminal Court (ICC) at The Hague for crimes against humanity.

Vice President Sara Duterte is a “secondary” respondent for the same charge, according to lawyer Kristina Conti, assistant to counsel at the International Criminal Court (ICC).

Sara was mayor of Davao City when her dad Digong was president from 2016 to 2022.

-oOo-

POWER OUTLOOK IN ILOILO CITY 

ROEL CASTRO, president and chief executive officer of Primelectric Holdings Inc., is bullish about the power industry despite the volatile generation charges imposed by the Wholesale Electricity Spot Market (WESM).

He revealed this during the “Power Outlook” presentation at the Hotel del Rio by Primelectric — the holding company behind MORE Power, Negros Power and Bohol Light – last Thursday.

WESM is the centralized venue for buyers and sellers to trade electricity as a commodity where prices are determined based on actual use (demand) and availability (supply).

As this corner reported last week, MORE Power’s residential rate in Iloilo City has gone down this month from ₱12.0344 to ₱11.1354 per kilowatt-hour.

This is because the company maximizes its purchase of power supply from the spot market when prices decline. For this month, it sourced 49 percent of its power supply from WESM.

Otherwise, the distribution utilities would have to rely solely on contracted energy supply from the power plants.

However, there is no guarantee the WESM downward trend will continue.