Sen. Rodante Marcoleta on Tuesday maintained that his detention over a pending criminal case does not diminish his role as a senator or deprive him of the right to vote in the impeachment trial of Vice President Sara Duterte.

Speaking to reporters after appearing before the Sandiganbayan, Marcoleta said he had submitted a manifestation to the Senate urging the chamber to find a way for him and Sen. Jinggoy Estrada to participate in the impeachment proceedings.

"My imprisonment does not mean that I am no longer senator, my imprisonment does not mean that total number of senators is not 24, that remains the same, and no matter what it would not be altered," Marcoleta said.

"It could only be changed if someone died, they resigned, or they can no longer fulfill their duty. Aside from those three, the total number of senators is 24," he added.

Marcoleta's remarks came after some members of the House prosecution panel argued that the threshold to convict Duterte should be lowered because of the detention of Marcoleta and Estrada and the continued absence of Sen. Ronald "Bato" dela Rosa.

Under the Constitution, the Senate has the exclusive power to try and decide impeachment cases, while conviction requires the concurrence of two-thirds of all its members. With 24 senators, the threshold for conviction remains 16 votes.

Marcoleta also lamented that his detention had disrupted the Senate's ongoing investigation into the alleged flood control scandal.

Reacting to President Ferdinand Marcos Jr.'s State of the Nation Address, Marcoleta said the President's announcement that a former House speaker would be investigated lacked specifics because no individual was identified.

He urged the administration to go further in addressing corruption, particularly allegations of kickbacks in infrastructure projects.

"Is that what you were only hoping for to be said? Because we should really look for the root of all this... it was the biggest corruption of our public funds," he said.

Marcoleta and his co-accused appeared before the Sandiganbayan's Third Division for the preliminary conference on the plunder case filed against them.

The charges stem from allegations that Marcoleta received P75 million in campaign donations before the 2025 national elections.