What Abstaining Means

What Abstaining Means

Abstention can have a major impact on the voting process ... even in the impeachment of Inday Sara.

While abstentions don’t count as a yes or no in the final vote, they can still influence the final result of a vote, especially in a hotly contested one.

Hearing Cong Edgar Erice leaning towards abstention makes one wonder what abstention can do and affect voting outcomes.

Abstention can cause a reduced quorum ... the possibility of a stalemate ... and an impact on closely contested votes, which can turn them into swing voters.

Let us dive into Edgar Erice's idea of abstention.

While all the political stones are rolling around you and in all directions, I can't imagine myself learning how to remain perfectly still while the world is colliding with heaven knows what?.

In a moment that calls for the "Yes" or the "No," Erice has bravely pioneered the "Maybe Later, I’m Washing My Hair" defense.

While the House Committee on Justice reached a staggering 53–0 vote—a number so unanimous it’s practically a chorus—Erice has decided that he isn't quite ready to join the song.

He’s not pro-Duterte, he’s not anti-accountability; he’s just... very, very "cautious."

1. The "Wait and See" Paradox
Erice’s main argument is that we shouldn't "rush" the impeachment. He wants to "hear from the Vice President first."

-The Logic: It’s like a referee refusing to blow the whistle on a foul because he wants to wait for the player to write a 500-word essay explaining why they tripped the opponent.

-The Reality: The whole point of the House voting is to send the case to the Senate—the literal place where she is supposed to explain herself. Erice is essentially blocking the door to the courtroom because he wants to hold a private chat in the hallway first. It’s not due process; it’s a procedural "Pause" button that only serves to keep the dust from settling.

2. The "Political Hit Job" Narrative
Erice has hinted that this might all be a "political hit job." It’s a classic line!

-The Strategy: When you can't explain where ₱125 million went in 11 days, you don't talk about the money—you talk about the "vibes."

-The Satire: To Erice, a mountain of COA findings and bank records isn't "evidence"; it’s just a really well-organized "hit job."

He’s waiting for a rebuttal that hasn't come, defending a silence that is deafening, and calling a unanimous institutional vote "hasty."

Apparently, in Erice-land, the only "unbiased" process is one that never actually reaches a conclusion.

3. Abstention: The "Invisible" Superpower
Erice’s decision to abstain from the vote is a stroke of existential genius.

He is Schrödinger’s Legislator: he is simultaneously present in the room but totally absent from the decision.

-The Pose: He frames his abstention as "independence."

-The Truth: Independence in a democracy usually involves making a choice based on principles.

Erice’s version of independence is more like being a food critic who refuses to taste the food but still complains that the kitchen is moving too fast.

He wants the prestige of the office without the messy inconvenience of actually having to take a stand.

4. The "Not Pro-Duterte" Pattern
Erice is very careful to reject the label of being a Duterte ally. He just happens to:

-Refuse to sign the complaint.

-Argue for more delays.

-Question the motives of the accusers.

-Sit out the final vote.

If it walks like a stall tactic, talks like a stall tactic, and keeps the accountability train stuck at the station, it might just be a stall tactic.

But don't call it that! Call it "Prudence." It sounds much more sophisticated at cocktail parties.

History is full of people who took a stand. It’s also full of people who were wrong.

But Edgar Erice is carving out a new niche: The Man Who Was Busy Checking the Weather.

While his colleagues were weighing probable cause, Erice was weighing the political wind.

He treats the Constitution like a "Choose Your Own Adventure" book where he’s trying to find the page that says "None of the Above."

Governance is not a spectator sport, and the House of Representatives is not a lounge.

When the threshold for accountability is met, you either open the gate or you lock it.

Sitting on top of the fence might give you a great view, but eventually, the fence is going to break—and you’re going to fall on whichever side is most convenient.