Robin Padilla Says Google Was Used Only for Translation, Not Legal Advice
ROBIN PADILLA – The senator clarified why he used Google during the first day of the Senate impeachment trial against Vice President Sara Duterte on July 6, 2026. The issue arose after he opposed the election of Senator-Judge Chiz Escudero as the trial’s presiding officer, leading some to question his reliance on an online translation tool.
Padilla explained that he used Google only to translate the English records of the Constitutional Commission (ConCom) deliberations into Filipino. He said the documents contained legal and constitutional terms that he wanted to understand correctly before discussing them. According to him, the translation helped ensure that he accurately presented the original meaning without making mistakes or changing the intent of the text.
In a Facebook post on July 7, Padilla rejected the criticism over his use of Google, saying the issue had been exaggerated. He argued that the focus should be on whether the impeachment court is following the Constitution instead of criticizing his use of a translation tool. He also claimed that the controversy was distracting the public from the more important constitutional issues surrounding the impeachment proceedings.
Padilla stressed that he did not use Google to interpret the law or make legal arguments. Instead, he relied on it only to translate the ConCom deliberations from English to Filipino so he could better understand the material and explain it accurately. He maintained that his intention was to avoid misinterpreting, adding to, or altering the meaning of the original constitutional discussions.
The senator reiterated that accuracy was his priority and that using a translation tool was a practical way to better understand complex legal documents. He insisted that the public discussion should focus on the constitutional process of the impeachment trial rather than his method of translating official records.
Meanwhile, the Senate was scheduled to continue the second day of the impeachment trial against Vice President Sara Duterte at 2:00 p.m. on July 7, 2026.
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