THE impeachment complaint against Vice President Sara Duterte is viewed by key lawmakers as a logical conclusion stemming from extensive House inquiries on the alleged misuse of confidential funds of her office and her own actions.
Deputy Majority Leader Lorenz Defensor of Iloilo, Assistant Majority Leader Zia Alonto Adiong and 1-Rider Party-list Rep. Rodge Gutierrez have emphasized that the findings from various committee hearings, particularly those conducted by the Committee on Good Government and Public Accountability, have culminated in this action to impeach Duterte.
“Personally po no, I can’t speak for everyone else but I believe I mentioned that it’s a long time coming. We all had our own personal opinions that came out of for example in Quad Comm and the Good Government Committees. But personally as an active member of those committees I feel that this is culmination and vindication of the findings that we have had there,” said Gutierrez.
Adiong agreed, noting, “I guess this is a logical conclusion of what we have discussed during those previous committee hearings. That the end result would be this, the actual filing of the impeachment complaint.”
The impeachment complaint encompasses several allegations against VP Duterte, including a public threat she made against President Ferdinand “Bongbong” Marcos Jr.
In a press conference held in November, Duterte claimed to have contracted an assassin to target President Marcos, his wife Liza and Speaker Ferdinand Martin G. Romualdez in the event of her assassination. This statement was widely reported and has been a focal point in the impeachment proceedings.
Defensor highlighted the gravity of Duterte’s actions.
“This is also a logical conclusion of the actuations of the Vice President herself. Nobody told her to go live on video and say that she has contracted somebody to kill the President, the wife of the President and the Speaker of the House of Representatives,” Defensor said.
“That is a direct threat to the life of the Chief Executive, the commander in chief of the Armed Forces as well as the House of Representatives, the Speaker of the House of Representatives,” he added.
Defensor underscored the constitutional implications, stating, “So clearly as a Vice President you do not do that to the President if you are to succeed if that happens. This is clearly a betrayal of public trust and a high crime as considered by the framers of the Constitution.”
“Mabigat po ito. This is a grave and serious offense to the Constitution,” Defensor said.
The Committee on Good Government and Public Accountability has been actively investigating various allegations against VP Duterte, including the alleged misuse of confidential funds during her tenure as Secretary of Education. These investigations have been instrumental in forming the basis of the impeachment complaint.
