The House committee is maintaining two impeachment complaints against VP Duterte
By Kenneth Christiane L. Basilio, A reporter
THE HOUSE COMMITTEE on Monday found two of the four impeachment petitions of Vice President (VP) Sara Duterte-Carpio to be sufficient, dismissing the others due to procedural irregularities in one and the withdrawal of the complainants in the other.
The Judiciary Committee reviewed the petitions to determine whether they were properly signed and approved by law enforcement, a necessary first step before a full investigation. “There are only two impeachment complaints,” said Batangas lawyer Gerville R. Luistro, committee chairman, after the 39-member committee’s hearing on Monday.
Civil society groups, activists and religious groups have filed four complaints since early February, alleging that Ms. Duterte misused hundreds of millions of pesos in secret and intelligence funds allocated to the Office of the Vice President and the Department of Education, which she ran.
The first complaint, filed on February 2 by left-leaning groups, was set aside because the Constitution prohibits multiple attempts to impeach an official within a year. Twenty-two congressmen voted to reject the appeal, and 10 opposed.
The petition accused the Vice President of misusing secret funds, directing subordinates to make false reports and skipping congressional budget hearings.
The second complaint was withdrawn by its 17 plaintiffs, who filed a similar complaint in favor of due process. “The plaintiffs… have decided to formally withdraw their complaint in order to complete the process and avoid any unnecessary delay,” according to a letter from the group.
Ms. Luistro said the dismissal of the two complaints will allow the committee to properly examine the remaining cases. “We can move quickly on this,” he said, noting that negotiations could take longer than previous processes because of the volume of documents and the scope of the allegations.
Speaker Faustino “Bojie” G. Dy III said he will not interfere in the work of the committee. “My role is not to pre-judge the outcome, or to influence the committee’s deliberations,” he said in a statement, adding that the House must work diligently, legally and openly.
Analysts said that the handling of the program will be closely watched. Political Science Professor Ederson DT. Tapia said the scrutiny will focus on whether the leaders of the House properly handled the disagreement, including Duterte’s supporters.
“Viewers should look at how the committee handles disagreements and whether the processes seem impartial or driven by political expediency,” he said.
Arjan P. Aguirre, assistant professor of political science at Ateneo de Manila University, said the House’s institutional credibility is at risk. “If the process appears to be too hasty, dismissive or one-sided, it could reinforce the notion that impeachment is a political weapon instead of protecting the constitution,” he said in a Facebook Messenger chat.
The Makabayan organization, which approved the first appeal, disagreed with the dismissal of the committee, saying that the House has the authority to make its own rules regarding prosecution. “It must not back down, and it must not be threatened by legal uncertainty that was not made by people,” said the Group List Lawyers. Antonio L. Tinio, Sarah Jane Elago and Renee Louise M. Co in a statement.
Former party-list representative France L. Castro, one of the plaintiffs in the dismissed case, said the committee may have erred in blocking Ms. Duterte from challenging the Supreme Court’s proceeding. “The committee and the leadership of the House are cautious,” he said BusinessWorld in Filipino.
The Judiciary Committee will now focus on the two remaining complaints, which will mark the first stage in a process that could lead to a full investigation against the Vice President.
