Senate Minority Leader Alan Peter Cayetano warned that the fairness of Vice President Sara Duterte’s impeachment trial is at risk unless the Supreme Court settles the dispute over what constitutes a majority in the Senate.

Cayetano’s bloc filed a manifestation before the Supreme Court on June 30, 2026 reiterating its petition questioning the validity of the June 3 session, which he called a “rump session.”

In a Facebook livestream on the same day, the lawyer-senator emphasized that the Court’s ruling is needed to settle the question of what constitutes a “majority of all members” of the Senate, especially as the chamber prepares for the impeachment trial on July 6.

“This is not about the Senate Presidency. This is about Constitutional order. It is about the numbers, but it is also about the moral boundaries and the law. Ano ba ang ‘majority of all members’?” he said.

“Sabi nila we are obstructing justice. Hindi po — we are obstructing injustice,” he added.

Under the Constitution, conviction in an impeachment trial requires the vote of at least two-thirds of all members of the Senate, or 16 votes.

However, this Constitutional rule hangs in the balance as efforts to reduce the required votes surface amid the possible absence of Cayetano-allied senators facing legal cases filed by the administration.

On June 1, Senator Jinggoy Estrada was arrested in connection with an alleged plunder case after publicly saying he would remain with Cayetano’s bloc.

Weeks later, the Office of the Ombudsman announced that Senator Rodante Marcoleta, another Cayetano ally, would face a non-bailable plunder case before the Sandiganbayan.

Cayetano noted that a non-bailable case would effectively keep Marcoleta from participating in Senate sessions, Blue Ribbon Committee hearings, and the impeachment trial while the case is pending.

“We’re not against the full application of the law. Lahat ng dapat managot, dapat managot. Pero hindi naman po pwedeng aayusan ng non-bailable na kaso para mabawasan ang mga senador at hindi na pwede mag-participate. Tapos kapag kumampi, abswelto na o wala nang kaso,” he said.

Cayetano said the unresolved dispute on the definition of “all members of the House” can affect the impeachment trial if the number of votes needed to convict is made to depend on how many senators are able to participate.

“Narinig na nating sinabi n’ung iba na kapag 22 lang sila (senators), baka hindi 16 ang kailangan para mag-convict. Ibig sabihin po ba noon, kapag anim ang kinulong na senador eh sa 12 [boto] pwede nang i-convict ang kahit na sinong impeachable officer?” he said.

The Minority Leader maintained his opposition against “bending the law” to weaken the country’s institutions for the political gain of some and to “cover up” corruption.

“‘Pag injustice na po, kailangan magsakripisyo na po tayo. Kasi po patapang na nang patapang ang mga nagnanakaw. Patapang na nang patapang ang cover-up,” he said.###