DAVAO CITY (MindaNews / 19 Dec) – Vice President Sara Duterte is facing yet another impeachment complaint on Thursday.
It was filed at 12:15 p.m. by Reverend Fathers Antonio Labiao Jr., Rico P. Ponce, Dionisio V. Ramos, and Esmeraldo A. Reforeal; Wilfredo G. Villanueva, lead founder of Stand Up for God (SUGOD) Rosary Group; Pinky L. Tam; Union of Peoples’ Lawyers in Mindanao (UPLM), represented by Vice Chairperson Atty. Joel B. Mahinay; Maria Loreto A. Lopez; and Shanelle Aubrey Gianina A. Gomez.
Camarines Sur 3rd District Rep. Gabriel Bordado Jr. and AAMBIS-OWA Partylist Rep. Lex Anthony Cris A. Colada endorsed the verified complaint.
Counsel Amand Ligutan told reporters that the complainants believe “that it is no longer just a constitutional and legal obligation of the members of Congress to impeach and remove from office the Vice President but that obligation now becomes a moral one.”
“We are invoking betrayal of public trust, plunder, malversation, technical malversation, and bribery. This is primarily based on how the sitting Vice President of the Republic disbursed the millions of pesos in 11 days without proper documentation,” he said.
The complainants alleged that Duterte committed culpable violation of the Constitution and betrayal of public trust by committing plunder and/or malversation, graft and corruption, and other high crimes in amassing and converting the amount of not less than P125 million from the confidential funds allocated to the Office of the Vice President and the P112 million budget of the Department of Education (DepEd) in 2022 and 2023, respectively.
They also accused the Vice President of corrupting and bribing the officials of DepEd.
In a statement, House Secretary General Reginald S. Velasco assured that the complaint will undergo “due deliberation in strict compliance with the Constitution and established legislative process.”
The first impeachment complaint was filed last Dec. 2 and two days thereafter, a second one was filed.
The filing of the impeachment complaints came after the growing tensions between the Dutertes and the Marcoses, including the President’s first cousin, House Speaker Martin Romualdez.
Under the 1987 Constitution, the grounds for impeachment are culpable violation of the Constitution, treason, bribery, graft and corruption, other high crimes, or betrayal of public trust. (Antonio L. Colina IV / MindaNews)
