Senate President Vicente “Tito” Sotto III, on Friday, Jan. 30, said that he is prepared to support Charter change if a proposal is brought before the Senate, citing concerns over the recent Supreme Court (SC) ruling that struck down the House of Representatives’ impeachment articles against Vice President Sara Duterte.

In an interview, Sotto told reporters that the decision is nothing short of a judicial legislation, arguing that the High Court effectively altered the constitutional mode of impeachment instead of adhering to the process outlined in the Constitution, while also failing to correct what he described as factual errors.

He pointed to the ruling’s claim that the Senate archived the impeachment case on February 5, saying the case was actually archived in June last year following the sine die adjournment of Congress.

Asked if the justices are not knowledgeable on the Senate's processes, Sotto said, "I don't think I can answer that question. My thinking would be, they have a different agenda. It's not a different thinking or what. Ibang tumbok nila, iba ang focus nila siguro (They are aimed at something else; perhaps their focus was different.".

He added that it was possible the justices either overlooked or did not act on these matters, noting that the court may operate differently from Congress, with no mechanisms like “suspending until tomorrow” or “next week” for deliberations

"Apparently, they did not directly correct in this decision some of the errors or the factual errors in the past decision. Parang hindi nila binanggit dito o hindi nila cinorrect (Apparently, in this decision, they did not directly correct some of the errors or factual mistakes in the previous ruling. It seems they did not mention them here or correct them)," he said.

"So it stands, therefore yung mga factual errors na yun. And then parang nilang binago yung mode ng pag-impeach. Mas mahirap, mas humihirap na ngayon (So, those factual errors therefore still stand. And then it seems they changed the mode of impeachment, making it more difficult — it has now become even harder)," he added.

Sotto said the impeachment mechanism was placed in the Constitution to allow for the swift removal of impeachable officials who fail to perform their duties, commit wrongdoing in office, or cause harm to the country and the people, stressing that such officials should not be allowed to remain in power for long.

He stated that the recent SC ruling has instead made the process more difficult, adding, “Forgive me, but I think impeachment now is an impossible dream.”

Sotto said Congress could first meet with the House of Representatives to discuss the issue, but noted that what he sees as the only real solution would be to change the Constitution. He said this could be done through a Constituent Assembly, warning that without such action, the country may have to wait for decades for the retirement of current SC justices before any shift in legal thinking occurs.

Sotto also expressed concern over the unanimous ruling, noting the absence of any dissenting or separate opinions explaining the justices’ votes, which he described as troubling. He added that while he had previously opposed both a Constitutional Convention and a Constituent Assembly, he is now willing to support constitutional change under the current circumstances.

He stated that he will not push for a constitutional amendment but will support it.

"Sapagkat kung ang Supreme Court pwedeng galawin ang Constitution, aba'y dapat galawin na namin. Sapat kami ang empowered to do so. Yun ang punto ko (Because if the Supreme Court can amend the Constitution, well, we should be able to amend it too. We are sufficiently empowered to do so. That's my point)," he said.

"Ang legislation ay sa Congress, hindi sa Supreme Court. Gusto natin baguhin ang Constitution, let's use a Constitutional Convention or a Constituent Assembly, hindi a Supreme Court decision (Legislation belongs to Congress, not the Supreme Court. If we want to change the Constitution, let us use a Constitutional Convention or a Constituent Assembly — not a Supreme Court decision)," he added.

Sotto clarified that his remarks have nothing to do with any personality, whether it involves the impeachment of President Marcos or Vice President Sara Duterte.