In a significant political development, the Philippine House of Representatives has voted to impeach Vice President Sara Duterte, with the decision being swiftly forwarded to the Senate for further action. The vote saw an overwhelming support from over 200 lawmakers, marking a critical juncture in the nation’s political landscape.
The impeachment process was initiated during a plenary session where House Secretary General Reginald Velasco confirmed that 215 members had sworn in support of the fourth impeachment complaint against Duterte. House Majority Leader Mannix Dalipe emphasized that the number of endorsers surpassed the constitutional requirement of one-third of the House members needed to proceed with impeachment.
Speaker Martin Romualdez, overseeing the session, approved the motion to send the impeachment complaint to the Senate, stating that the complaint, backed by more than one-third of the House, was officially transmitted without any objections from the floor.
The complaint against Duterte includes six major allegations, ranging from conspiracy to assassinate key government figures, including President Ferdinand R. Marcos Jr., First Lady Liza Araneta-Marcos, and Speaker Romualdez, to financial misconduct involving the misappropriation of PHP612.5 million in confidential funds. Other charges include bribery and corruption within the Department of Education, unexplained wealth, involvement in extrajudicial killings linked to the Davao Death Squad, and actions aimed at destabilizing the government.
The House has appointed a team of 11 prosecutors to handle the impeachment trial in the Senate, which will require a two-thirds vote to convict and remove Duterte from office. If convicted, she would be barred from holding any public office in the future.
The Senate, which will now take up the matter, has indicated that any action on the impeachment complaint will require plenary approval. Senator Joel Villanueva stressed the importance of a plenary session to move forward, while Senator Ronald Dela Rosa suggested that the Senate might address the issue after the upcoming midterm elections on May 12.