The possibility of another impeachment bid against Vice President Sara Duterte remains tied to a pending Supreme Court ruling, according to a coalition leader, even as Duterte dismissed renewed threats as harassment lacking proof.
Bagong Alyansang Makabayan chairman Teddy Casiño said any fresh complaint would hinge on how the high court resolves an appeal questioning its earlier decision that struck down the Articles of Impeachment against Duterte. The tribunal had ruled that the filing violated the Constitution’s one-year bar and infringed on the vice president’s right to due process.
Speaking in Davao City on Thursday, Dec. 25, Duterte said the repeated efforts to impeach her have exhausted the public. “It’s already tiring for the people, that impeachment, because we can see that there’s no evidence of their accusations, totally for threats and harassment,” she said.
Late last year, three impeachment complaints initiated by private individuals and groups were filed against Duterte but never reached deliberation in the House plenary. The process shifted on Feb. 5 when lawmakers approved a fourth complaint by a vote of 215 and immediately transmitted the Articles of Impeachment to the Senate.
The House, led at the time by Speaker Martin Romualdez, cited accusations including betrayal of public trust, culpable violations of the Constitution, graft and corruption, and other high crimes in moving forward with the case.
The Supreme Court later voted 13-0-2 to invalidate the Articles of Impeachment sent to the Senate, finding that the action breached the one-year rule under Article XI, Section 3 of the Constitution and Duterte’s due process rights under the Bill of Rights.
