Escudero rejects VP post if Sara is ousted

Senator Francis "Chiz" Escudero has ruled out succeeding Vice President Sara Duterte if she is convicted in her impeachment trial, saying it would be improper to assume an office left vacant by a verdict he helped deliver.
Escudero said no offer had been made and stressed that his refusal would be a personal decision, not a restriction on other senator-judges who could be nominated to fill the vacancy.
“Hindi ko tatanggapin sa simpleng rason: conflict of interest. Kami nagpasya, hindi tama ’yon,” Escudero said in a podcast interview.

Under the Constitution, the President nominates a replacement vice president from among members of Congress, subject to confirmation by a majority vote of both the Senate and the House, voting separately.
Escudero also rejected accusations of bias in his handling of Duterte's impeachment trial, saying he had yet to reach a verdict and would decide only after hearing both sides.
“Simple sagot ko, oo, kasi wala pa akong decision,” he said when asked whether he had been fair.
“Kung may decision ako ngayon pa lang na hindi ko pa naririnig ang kabila, siguro pwede mong sabihin sa akin na hindi ako patas, may kinikilingan ako,” he added.
Escudero acknowledged complaints from prosecutors that he had been tougher on their witnesses but said the prosecution bore the burden of proving the allegations against Duterte.
He said the defense would face the same scrutiny when it presents its evidence.
The senator also defended his decision to give fellow senator-judges latitude in questioning witnesses despite concerns that some appeared to favor either the prosecution or the defense.
“Hindi ako nagkukulang sa paalala na dapat nakabatay sa batas, ebidensya,” he said, stressing that senators must base their judgment on the law and evidence.
“Still, there is an effort para sa kada senator-judge na pumantay, na balanse,” he added.
The impeachment court earlier allowed House prosecutors to withdraw three of the four articles against Duterte, leaving the allegation of unexplained wealth as the sole remaining charge.
Duterte's defense has sought to rebut evidence presented on the withdrawn charges, arguing that the allegations remain on the trial record despite their withdrawal.
Escudero maintained that he would reserve judgment until both sides had been heard.
Duterte's conviction requires a two-thirds vote of qualified senator-judges, or 14 votes if 20 senators are deemed eligible to participate.###