Congress PH FILE

Has the House of Representatives already crossed the line needed to move forward with impeachment?

For law dean Mel Sta. Maria, the answer may very well be yes.

In a recent statement, Sta. Maria said the House could have already reached the level of “probable cause” in the impeachment proceedings against Vice President Sara Duterte—a key threshold that allows the case to advance to the Senate for trial.

Different standards, different stage

Sta. Maria explained that many are confusing how credibility is judged in House hearings versus an actual Senate impeachment trial.

According to him, the House Committee on Justice operates on a much lower threshold.

“Ang ‘credibility’ issue sa hearing sa HOR Committee of Justice ay di-katulad ng ‘credibility’ issue sa Trial sa Senado,” he said.

In simple terms, the House is not trying to determine absolute truth just yet. Instead, it looks at whether the accusations are believable enough to move forward.

“Sa HOR, ang credibility ay ayon sa likelihood o probability ng kwento lamang,” he explained.

That means the central question during hearings isn’t “Did she actually do it?” but rather, “Could she have done it?”

If a testimony appears plausible to an ordinary person, Sta. Maria said, it may already be considered credible at this stage—even without definitive proof.

Senate trial raises the bar

That standard changes dramatically once the case reaches the Senate.

There, the focus shifts to establishing what actually happened, based on stronger and more concrete evidence.

“Sa trial sa Senado, ang tanong ay ‘Ginawa niya nga ba talaga?’” Sta. Maria said, noting that the level of proof required is significantly higher and centered on factual certainty, not just probability.

He also stressed that not everything said during hearings automatically counts as evidence. Opinions and verbal claims must still be backed by proof and weighed against opposing arguments.

“Ang mga kuro-kuro… ay hindi ebidensya,” he pointed out.

Credibility isn’t black and white

Sta. Maria also pushed back against the idea that certain witnesses should be dismissed outright, even if they have questionable backgrounds.

He said credibility doesn’t automatically disappear, especially when testimonies are supported by evidence or align with other accounts.

As an example, he cited cases involving large, unauthorized public spending flagged by audit findings. Even if a witness has a questionable reputation, their claims can still carry weight if backed by documents like a Commission on Audit disallowance.

So, what now?

Given these considerations, Sta. Maria believes the House may already have enough basis to move the case forward.

“Sa tingin ko, mukhang na-reach na ang level na ito,” he said, referring to the probable cause threshold.

If that assessment holds, the next step would be for the House to elevate the case to the Senate—where a full-blown impeachment trial would determine, with finality, whether the allegations hold true.

For now, the debate continues—but the line between possibility and proof is becoming the central battleground in the unfolding impeachment process.