SENATE Minority Leader Alan Peter Cayetano on Monday backed Sen. Francis Escudero’s pledge to turn down the vice presidency if Vice President Sara Duterte is removed from office through impeachment.
“That's right! All of us Senator-Judges should make this declaration,” Cayetano said on a Facebook post, sharing a news report quoting Escudero.
Escudero said he would decline the position “for the simple reason that it would be a conflict of interest. We are the ones who made the decision, and I don’t think that would be right."
Cayetano called on senators who would sit as judges in future impeachment trials to remain politically neutral, particularly in cases involving the president or vice president.
The trial, which resumes in November, will tackle the remaining charge against Duterte after House prosecutors withdrew three of the four articles of impeachment on Oct. 13.
Dropped were Article I, which concerned the misuse of confidential funds; Article III, which accused Duterte of bribery; and Article IV, which involved alleged grave threats and related accusations against President Ferdinand Marcos Jr., the first lady and former House Speaker Martin Romualdez.
Article II accuses Duterte of failing to fully disclose assets in her Statements of Assets, Liabilities and Net Worth, and of retaining business interests while serving as vice president.
During the prosecution’s presentation, forensic financial analyst Alexander Cabrera identified about P817.87 million in allegedly unexplained wealth amassed by Duterte and her husband, lawyer Manases “Mans” Carpio, from 2022 to 2025.
He said the estimate could reach P1.5 billion under less conservative assumptions.
The prosecution rested its case on Oct. 13 and was directed to submit its documentary and object evidence for Article II.
The defense is expected to present its evidence when the trial resumes.
Cayetano’s call highlights concerns about the appearance of a conflict of interest if senators deciding an impeachment case could also benefit politically from the removal of the official on trial.
Escudero’s pledge addresses that concern as a personal commitment, although senators are not automatically disqualified from being considered for the vice presidency.
Under the Constitution, only the Senate can try and decide impeachment cases. Conviction requires the concurrence of two-thirds of all its members.
If the vice presidency becomes vacant, the president nominates a replacement from among the members of the Senate or House of Representatives.
The nominee must be confirmed by a majority of all members of both chambers, voting separately.
Former senator Teofisto Guingona Jr. became vice president in 2001 after then-president Gloria Macapagal-Arroyo appointed him following the ouster of former president Joseph Estrada.
