Escudero to decline VP post if offered, urges pro-impeachment to do the same

Metro Manila, Philippines - Senate President Francis “Chiz” Escudero said he would decline the vice presidency if offered, should impeached Vice President Sara Duterte be convicted and ousted, and urged impeachment proponents to do the same.

“Hindi ako interesadong maging bise. Ang pangit naman nun sa panlasa. Kami ang magdedesisyon kaugnay niyan tapos ‘yun pala interesado ako at gusto ko pala,” Escudero said in a press conference in Sorsogon on Tuesday, Feb. 25.

“So ngayon pa lang sinasabi ko na hindi ako interesado at tatanggihan ko ‘yun kung inalok man sa akin ‘yun. Hindi tama at hindi dapat ginagawa ‘yun,” he added.

[Translation: I'm not interested in becoming vice president. It doesn’t sit well with me. We are the ones who will decide on that, and then it turns out I'm interested and I want it. So I'm saying now that I'm not interested and I would reject it if it were offered to me. It's not right, and it shouldn't be done.]

Under the Constitution and Senate rules, the Senate leader presides over impeachment matters, except when the president is on trial, in which case the Chief Justice of the Supreme Court shall preside.

The Constitution states that if the vice presidency becomes vacant during the official’s term, the president shall choose a replacement from among lawmakers aged 40 and above. The nominee will assume office once confirmed by a majority of the members of the House of Representative and Senate, voting separately.

Escudero said delicadeza (propriety) dictates that the more than 200 House lawmakers who signed the Articles of Impeachment, as well as those actively pursuing it, should refrain from targeting the vice presidency.

“Dahil baka mamaya masabihan sila na ito lamang pala ang interes at gusto nila kaya nila ginawa ito (Because they might be accused later of having this as their only interest and that it was their motive for doing this),” Escudero said.

“So prudence is the better part of valor, delicadeza is rarely seen in government but I think we can always go back to it and rekindle and refresh it in the minds of our people,” he added.

The House impeached Duterte on Feb. 5, sending the Articles of Impeachment to the Senate. Escudero said he anticipates that the trial will begin in July, though some lawmakers are pushing for an earlier start, citing the constitutional mandate to proceed “forthwith.”

The Supreme Court has ordered lawmakers to comment on a petition that seeks to compel the Senate to immediately convene an impeachment court, as well as another petition filed by Duterte herself, seeking to nullify the fourth impeachment complaint passed by the House for violating the one-year ban in the Constitution.