What are the grounds for senator-judges to inhibit? Spox explains

Senate impeachment court — Photo from Senate Public Relations and Information Bureau

MANILA, Philippines — Impeachment court spokesperson Reginald Tongol explained the grounds that may lead senator-judges to inhibit in the impeachment trial of Vice President Sara Duterte.

In an interview with DZMM on Tuesday, Tongol stated that, based on the Rules of Court, senator-judges can be removed from a trial through “voluntary disqualification” and “mandatory inhibition.”

“It is stated in our Rules of Court that it is the only standard we can base our decisions on, the Rules of Court of the Supreme Court, which state there the mandatory inhibition and the voluntary disqualification of oneself,” the impeachment court spokesperson emphasized.

Tongon mentioned that voluntary disqualification is given to the discretion of the senator-judges if they feel that they cannot render impartial justice.

“If it is said to be voluntary inhibition, it is up to the judge’s conscience whether he/she will inhibit or not,” he said.

“So any party can move to say, ‘Hey, you are biased, senator-judge or judge.  You should inhibit.’ However, the judge can also deny it, or grant it. It depends on his/her reflection whether or not he/she can provide impartial justice,” he added.

READ: Sara Duterte impeachment: What you need to know

Meanwhile, the impeachment court spokesperson said that if a senator-judge refuses to voluntarily inhibit themselves from the trial, they may also be removed from participating in the proceeding through “mandatory inhibition.”

“When the judge has personal knowledge of evidentiary facts concerning the proceeding; when the judge, of course, will not appear in the impeachment court, served as executor, administrator, or trustee of the lawyer representing one of the litigants; when he was part of the review of the decision of the lower court, because he is also the judge in the lower court; when there is a relationship by consanguinity or affinity within the sixth degree to the parties or to the council; when the judge also has a financial interest in the matter being litigated,” he noted.

Tongol said that the parties would usually be the ones to highlight the basis for the mandatory inhibition against a senator-judge.

Calls for senator-judges to recuse themselves

Different groups have recently called on some senator-judges to recuse themselves from the impeachment trial of Duterte, particularly those who endorsed her during the 2025 midterm elections.

The Vice President, on the other hand, said on Monday that senator-judges should not be asked to recuse solely due to their political biases.

READ: Sara Duterte: Senator-judges can’t be asked to inhibit based on biases

Senate President Francis Escudero and House prosecution team member San Juan City Rep. Ysabel Maria Zamora, on the other hand, said in separate interviews on Monday that the inhibition for senator-judges in an impeachment trial “should be voluntary.”

READ: Tolentino won’t inhibit from Sara Duterte impeachment trial

Duterte was impeached by the House of Representatives on February 5, with some of the grounds for the said impeachment including “culpable violation of the Constitution, betrayal of public trust, and graft and corruption.”

On June 11, the Senate impeachment court sent out the writ of summons, which gave Duterte 10 days to respond to the articles of impeachment sent by the House to the Senate. /das