The verdict was rather unexpected although many analysts have already predicted a conviction. The overwhelming lead of the votes for conviction came as a surprise especially to those who expected at least an abstention from the allies of former President Gloria Macapagal-Arroyo (the president who appointed Corona to the CJ post).
The senators were allowed to explain their votes as they voted according to alphabetical order. The common reason among those who voted for conviction was the failure of the Chief Justice to reveal his dollar and peso accounts in his Statement of Assets and Liabilities. On the other hand, those who voted for an acquittal opined that such failure does not amount to an impeachable offense.
The senators only had to vote for Article II of the filed Articles of Impeachment since a conviction in any of the articles has the same effect of removing the Chief Justice from his post. The House of Representatives (prosecutors) filed seven articles of impeachment but four of which were voluntarily dropped mid-trial by the prosecutors themselves. The remaining articles involved allegations of misdeclarations in the Statement of Assets and Liabilities, partiality as a judge, and flip-flopping in judgment.
The Senate President who was also the presiding officer in the impeachment trial said that the corresponding penalty for the verdict is the removal of the Chief Justice from his post and an accompanying disqualification in government service. The Senate President also claimed that the verdict is final and immediately executory but the lead counsel for the defense of the Chief Justice argued that they still have an option to go to the Supreme Court to appeal "abuses of discretion" of the Senate sitting as an impeachment court. The lead defense counsel opined that since the law is silent on whether or not the verdict is appealable and immediately executory, they can still exhaust all legal means to help the Chief Justice.
Image from spot.ph
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