In a historic first, 215 out of 306 lawmakers in the House of Representatives (HOR) voted to endorse the impeachment complaint against Vice President Sara Duterte last February 5.
Bagong Alyansang Makabayan (BAYAN) welcomed the impeachment of VP Sara Duterte, described it as a “historic first for a sitting vice president” and called for the next logical step for the “convening of the impeachment court and for genuine accountability via conviction.”
This breaking news followed a huge rally on January 31 by thousands of Filipinos in Liwasang Bonifacio led by BAYAN and joined by people from all the basic sectors, including workers and peasants, youth and students, church people, indigenous groups, civil society groups. Under the theme “Kilos bayan laban sa kahirapan, korapsyon, at kawalang pananagutan”, they condemned the Marcos Jr government for its appalling failure to address rising prices, worsening poverty, widespread dishonesty and corruption, and ongoing impunity in the country, and demanded accountability. They also raised the call to impeach VP Duterte on charges that included graft and corruption with the use of intelligence and confidential funds and the betrayal of public trust.
I believe that Sara’s impeachment would not have been possible were it not for the people’s determined and sustained collective actions to protest, to be vigilant, to always push back, to not be cowed. We saw this out on the streets, inside the halls of Congress, in the submission of impeachment complaints, and on social and mainstream media.
Congresswoman France Castro was the first to raise, unafraid, the issue of anomalous confidential funds, at a time when to ask those questions meant to be bullied and harassed. Thanks to Castro and the Makabayan Bloc legislators, this expose led to the impeachment vote, even if it took two years to make this happen.
It is now the Senate’s task to act on the complaint and serve as the impeachment tribunal to try VP Duterte, hold her accountable, and convict her. But Senate President Chiz Escudero has chosen to wait. Citing the lack of time to convene, session breaks, and the May midterm elections, the trial will likely happen in four months! Escudero chose to ignore the urgency and importance of the impeachment complaint, the role of the Senate, and the Constitutional mandate to proceed with the trial “forthwith”, meaning immediately (Look it up in the dictionary, Senate President Escudero).
Interestingly, President Marcos Jr. never supported any impeachment call for VP Duterte. His dismissive and lame reasoning to the press in November 2024 was that “In the larger scheme of things, Sara is unimportant. So please do not file impeachment complaints.” He called it a waste of time, that “it will take up all of our time, and for what? For nothing, for nothing.” That declaration exposed Marcos Jr. had no presidential backbone and worse, exposed his complicity in corruption in the highest levels.
I would think that holding elected officials accountable for corruption, malversation of funds, misappropriation of funds, and extrajudicial killings is NOT A WASTE OF TIME.
There is talk of the hypothetical scenario of VP Sara Duterte’ resigning and vacating her position BEFORE she gets convicted. Can she still run for public office (God forbid!)? With Sara no longer in office, will the trial stop? Or, if Sara resigns, will the trial continue and convict her, and will the impeachment court impose the penalty of disqualification to hold public office? If impeachment fails, can criminal charges be filed?
BAYAN and people’s organizations, including overseas Filipinos, will continue to press on with bigger mobilizations nationwide to demand VP Sara Duterte’s impeachment, conviction, and arrest. People’s organizations will continue to demand their basic and legitimate demands such as living wages, land reform, health care and education. These will be in the spirit of the 1986 EDSA people power uprising that ousted the dictator Marcos Sr. and his family out of the country.
We deserve a government that serves, not robs the people, not a government of bureaucrats that line their own pockets, not a government of dynastic families and their sycophants, and not a government of self-serving and greedy interests who disguise themselves as public servants.
By Erie Maestro
