Impeachment court spokesperson, lawyer Reginald Tongol clarified on Saturday, June 14, that there was no physical return of the articles of impeachment against Vice President Sara Duterte to the House of Representatives.

Instead, he described the process as a “constructive referral.

In an interview at Usapang Senado on DWIZ, Tongol explained that the order issued by the Senate merely asked the House to revisit and supplement the articles it transmitted.

“Yung pag-re-return o pag-re-refer back po ng articles of impeachment, wala pong physical na ipinapasa o ibinabalik sa House po. Ito lamang po ay constructive referral. Meaning, tingnan niyo po ulit yung inyong ipinasang articles of impeachment at dagdagan niyo yan na itong mga dalawang sertipikasyon na hinihingi po namin (The return or referral back of the articles of impeachment does not involve physically handing over or sending them back to the House. It is merely a constructive referral. Meaning, take another look at the articles of impeachment you submitted and add the two certifications we are requesting),” Tongol said.

Tongol also referenced Speaker Martin Romualdez’s remarks during the House’s final session day, and noted the lower chamber’s willingness to comply.

“And I think doon po rin sa sinabi ni House Speaker Romualdez nung speech niya po nung huling araw ng House, sinabi niya rin po na magkocomply sila (And I think, as House Speaker Romualdez also said in his speech on the last day of the House session, he also said that they will comply), he said.

So the impeachment court I think welcomes these kinds of mga pahayag po ng ating mga House leadership para po walang banggaan na sinasabi at wala rin pong constitutional crisis na mangyari (So the impeachment court I think welcomes these kinds of statements from our House leadership so that there will be no clash, and no constitutional crisis will occur),” he added.

Tongol says this is what the impeachment court is essentially telling the House: let’s resolve this ourselves, and let us be the ones to decide on the constitutional issues, and that there's no need to involve the Supreme Court (SC) or wait for it to step in.

When asked whether the process posed a constitutional issue, Tongol firmly responded that it did not.

“Actually po, wala namang constitutional issue [sa pag-return ng articles of impeachment] doon kasi nga as to all matters about trying and deciding about the happenings about an impeachment, this is the sole power po ng ating Senado as an impeachment court (Actually, there is no constitutional issue [in the return of the articles of impeachment] because, when it comes to all matters of trying and deciding anything related to an impeachment, this is the sole power of our Senate as the impeachment court),” he said.

He further explained that the Senate’s power in impeachment proceedings is broad and established by precedent, as he referenced past rulings from both Philippine and United States (US) jurisprudence.

He noted that the Senate impeachment rules allow for flexibility and are intentionally distinct from court procedures.

“That’s why, if you look at the Senate rules on impeachment, they are not very specific, unlike the rules of ordinary courts, he said.

Because it allows the political side to interpret how our senator-judges understand the events or motions filed. That’s why the impeachment process was not entrusted to a regular court,” he added.

The Senate, sitting as an impeachment court, is expected to resume further deliberations following the House’s compliance with the procedural clarifications it requested.