Former Supreme Court Chief Justice Reynato Puno reminded government officials that arbitrary powers have no place in a democracy, in response to Senate President Francis “Chiz” Escudero’s claim that there are “no limits” on what the Senate impeachment court can or cannot do.

Escudero made the remark Monday, defending the Senate’s controversial move to return the articles of impeachment against Vice President Sara Duterte to the House of Representatives—a move critics say was unconstitutional.

“The impeachment court has no limitation in connection with what we cannot and can decide,” Escudero said, citing the 1987 Constitution, which states that the Senate has the sole power to try and decide all impeachment cases.

While Puno, who also chairs the Philippine Constitution Association (Philconsa), acknowledged the Senate’s “primary jurisdiction” over impeachment cases, he emphasized that its actions must remain within constitutional bounds.

“In a democracy, there is no such thing as arbitrary powers. There is always that principle of checks and balances,” Puno said in an interview with DZMM.

He added that orders issued by the Senate could still be subject to judicial review by the Supreme Court if they violate constitutional provisions.

Asked if the Senate’s actions in returning the articles of impeachment could constitute grave abuse of discretion, Puno responded: “That is what’s being studied — not only by Philconsa, but also by law deans, constitutional law professors, and legal experts.”

Still, Puno warned that while the case could be elevated to the Supreme Court, it should also be considered whether doing so would delay the Senate’s impeachment proceedings.

On 10 June, the Senate voted 18-5 to return the impeachment complaint to the House, demanding that it certify that no constitutional provision was violated when it tackled four impeachment complaints in the same year — only one of which was adopted.

The Constitution prohibits subjecting an impeachable official to more than one impeachment proceeding within a year.

In response, the House adopted a resolution stating that the process complied with constitutional requirements, and that only one valid impeachment case reached the voting stage.

New members of the House, who will assume office on June 30, are also expected to certify their willingness to prosecute the case—one of the requirements laid out by the Senate before resuming trial.

If found guilty, Vice President Duterte could be removed from office and permanently disqualified from holding any public office.