16/09/2026
The 2/3 Threshold versus Decoupling of Penalties in Impeachment
Bagong Alyansang Makabayan v. Zamora [ G.R. No. 138570, October 10, 2000 ] in its En Banc ruling decreed as follows:
"As to the matter of voting, Section 21, Article VII particularly requires that a treaty or international agreement, to be valid and effective, must be concurred in by at least two-thirds of all the members of the Senate. On the other hand, Section 25, Article XVIII simply provides that the treaty be "duly concurred in by the Senate."
Applying the foregoing constitutional provisions, a two-thirds vote of all the members of the Senate is clearly required so that the concurrence contemplated by law may be validly obtained and deemed present. While it is true that Section 25, Article XVIII requires, among other things, that the treaty-the VFA, in the instant case-be "duly concurred in by the Senate," it is very true however that said provision must be related and viewed in light of the clear mandate embodied in Section 21, Article VII, which in more specific terms, requires that the concurrence of a treaty, or international agreement, be made by a two -thirds vote of all the members of the Senate. Indeed, Section 25, Article XVIII must not be treated in isolation to section 21, Article, VII.
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Under these circumstances, the charter provides that the Senate shall be composed of twenty-four (24) Senators. Without a tinge of doubt, two-thirds (2/3) of this figure, or not less than sixteen (16) members, favorably acting on the proposal is an unquestionable compliance with the requisite number of votes mentioned in Section 21 of Article VII. The fact that there were actually twenty-three (23) incumbent Senators at the time the voting was made,[31] will not alter in any significant way the circumstance that more than two-thirds of the members of the Senate concurred with the proposed VFA, even if the two-thirds vote requirement is based on this figure of actual members (23). In this regard, the fundamental law is clear that two-thirds of the 24 Senators, or at least 16 favorable votes, suffice so as to render compliance with the strict constitutional mandate of giving concurrence to the subject treaty."
Following this ruling where there were only 23 active Senators then, the threshold may be argued to remain at 16 Senators active or not, be it conviction threshold or ratification of treaties. Unless revisited by the Supreme Court, arguing against this rule remains a legal challenge and may be regarded more as a politcal expediency. Altertantively, decoupling of penalties may be more viable, legally and politically.
