MANILA — Manila Rep. and pastor Benny Abante said he believes the prosecution has already presented enough grounds to impeach Vice President Sara Duterte, even as her Senate impeachment trial continues.
“One or two things about the Vice President, guilty na siya eh,” Abante said, citing alleged threats as sufficient, in his view, to constitute betrayal of public trust.
A view from the prosecution side
Abante sits in the House of Representatives, the chamber that impeached the Vice President and whose members serve as prosecutors in the Senate trial. His assessment is therefore an advocate’s reading of the evidence rather than a neutral one.
Betrayal of public trust is one of the constitutional grounds for impeachment, alongside culpable violation of the Constitution, bribery, graft and corruption, other high crimes, and treason.
The decision is not his to make
The final determination of guilt or acquittal rests with the senator-judges after they weigh the evidence presented during the trial. Conviction in an impeachment trial requires a two-thirds vote of the Senate.
Statements from House prosecutors during an ongoing trial carry no evidentiary weight before the impeachment court, and senator-judges are expected to decide on the record before them.
What our readers said
Breaking News Negros Oriental reviewed 800 comments left on its own coverage of this story. The most common theme was criticism of government or officials, appearing in 85 of 781 comments carrying text — about 11 per cent.
Other recurring themes were sympathy, prayers or condolence (83), questions about timing or priorities (56), politics, campaigning or elections (53), appreciation or thanks (26).
Themes were identified by keyword analysis of comment text. The sample reflects the reaction of this publication’s readers rather than a scientific survey of public opinion, and individual commenters are not identified.
Reporting by Breaking News Negros Oriental. The impeachment trial is ongoing and no verdict has been rendered. All allegations remain unproven.
