The House of Representatives has voted to impeach Vice President Sara Duterte, with 215 lawmakers endorsing the verified complaint against her. The impeachment complaint has been formally transmitted to the Senate, where Duterte will face trial.
The complaint, which cites Culpable Violation of the Constitution, Betrayal of Public Trust, Graft and Corruption, and Other High Crimes, was approved by the House plenary. Since the 215 endorsers exceeded the one-third threshold of the 306-member House, the complaint was automatically sent to the Senate, as mandated by the 1987 Constitution.
At 5:50 p.m., Senate Secretary Renato Bantug Jr. received the Articles of Impeachment from House Secretary General Reginald Velasco.
Grounds for Impeachment
The impeachment primarily stems from the House Good Government and Public Accountability panel’s inquiry into the use of confidential funds by both the Office of the Vice President (OVP) and the Department of Education (DepEd) under Duterte’s leadership.
The investigation uncovered irregularities, including acknowledgment receipts with incorrect dates, signatories lacking birth records, and unreadable names submitted to the Commission on Audit (COA) to account for disbursed confidential funds.
The impeachment complaint outlines seven Articles of Impeachment:
- Conspiracy to assassinate President Ferdinand Marcos Jr., First Lady Liza Marcos, and Speaker Martin Romualdez.
- Malversation of ₱612.5 million in confidential funds with questionable liquidation documents.
- Bribery and corruption within the DepEd, including alleged cash handouts to former officials.
- Unexplained wealth, with Duterte’s assets reportedly quadrupling between 2007 and 2017, and failure to disclose these in her Statement of Assets, Liabilities, and Net Worth (SALN).
- Involvement in extrajudicial killings in Davao City.
- Destabilization, insurrection, and public disorder efforts, such as boycotting the State of the Nation Address (SONA), leading rallies calling for President Marcos’ resignation, obstructing congressional investigations, and threatening harm to the First Couple and Romualdez.
- The totality of Duterte’s conduct as Vice President.
COA Findings and Financial Irregularities
During the inquiry, the COA issued a notice of disallowance on the OVP’s use of ₱73 million in confidential funds within 11 days in 2022. Of this amount, ₱69 million was linked to suspicious payments for rewards, goods, and medicines without supporting documents to justify successful intelligence or surveillance operations.
The COA also flagged ₱3.5 million used for office equipment, such as tables, chairs, desktop computers, and printers, which were not properly justified as being for confidential operations, violating Joint Circular guidelines on the use of such funds.
Political Reactions and Family Response
Speaker Martin Romualdez emphasized that the House’s decision reflects its commitment to uphold the Constitution, stating, “No public official, regardless of their position, is above the law.”
However, Davao City Rep. Paolo Duterte, the Vice President’s brother, condemned the impeachment as “political persecution.” He accused Iloilo Rep. Janette Garin and other lawmakers of orchestrating a “sinister” plot to hastily push the case forward.
“If they were unfazed by the over one million rallying supporters of the Iglesia Ni Cristo, then they are blindly marching toward an even greater storm—one that could shake the very foundation of their rule,” Rep. Duterte warned.
Next Steps in the Impeachment Process
The Senate will now convene as an impeachment court to try the case. A two-thirds vote is required to convict and remove Vice President Duterte from office. The last time the Senate conducted an impeachment trial was in 2012, resulting in the conviction of Chief Justice Renato Corona.
The House plenary also appointed the following prosecutors for the impeachment trial:
- Batangas Rep. Gerville Luistro
- Antipolo Rep. Romeo Acop
- Manila Rep. Joel Chua
- 1-Rider party-list Rep. Rodge Gutierrez
- Ako Bicol party-list Rep. Raul Bongalon
- General Santos Rep. Loreto Acharon
- 4Ps party-list Rep. Marcelino Libanan
- Oriental Mindoro Rep. Arnan Panaligan
- Taguig Rep. Isabel Maria Zamora
- Iloilo Rep. Lorenz Defensor
- Bukidnon Rep. Jonathan Keith Flores
Vice President Duterte has publicly stated that she welcomes the impeachment complaints filed against her.