The three impeachment complaints lodged against Vice President Sara Duterte two months ago are set to advance this week to the Office of the Speaker, a House of Representatives official confirmed Monday.

In an ambush interview, House Secretary General Reginald Velasco said he “will act on [the petitions] this week” after giving sufficient time to a group of lawmakers said to be filing a fourth impeachment complaint against Duterte.

“As of now, there is still no fourth impeachment complaint filed. So, you know, I think we have given them enough time. So, we will have to transmit the impeachment complaints within this week,” Velasco told reporters in a mix of Filipino and English.

The petitioners, particularly the Makabayan bloc, had expressed doubt about the potential filing of the fourth complaint, suspecting that it might be merely a trick to delay the impeachment process.

Velasco stressed there has been “no instruction” to him from the House leadership, primarily Speaker Martin Romualdez, to delay the action on the said petitions.

The three impeachment complaints against Duterte filed in December are all anchored on the purported irregularities in her use of P612.5 million in confidential funds (P500 million for the Office of the Vice President and P112.5 million for the Department of Education during her tenure as its secretary).

Duterte and President Ferdinand Marcos Jr. had been in loggerheads after running alongside each other in the 2022 elections.

Her father, former President Rodrigo Duterte, has since openly criticized Marcos, with the two men at one point openly accusing each other of using illegal drugs.

Still, Marcos has publicly opposed the impeachment of Duterte as a waste of time for Congress.

Despite the House being dominated by Duterte’s critics, Velasco confirmed that the number of endorsers of the three complaints remains lacking to fast-track the process.

Romualdez and Duterte are seen as potential rivals in the 2028 presidential elections.

Several congressmen have reportedly gone cold in supporting efforts to oust the VP, citing time pressure. Congress is set to adjourn on Friday for a three-month break for the campaign season.

The session will resume on 2 June, after the 12 May elections. Time constraint is seen to hamper the bid to dethrone Duterte, although some petitioners argued that now is the best time to impeach her.

While Duterte has repeatedly denied any wrongdoing, she remains unfazed, viewing the impending trial as an opportunity to “exclusively” address the corruption allegations leveled against her.

Earlier, lawyer Michael Henry Yusingco, an independent policy analyst and constitutional expert, asserted that the House breached its own rule by stalling the progress of three impeachment petitions against Duterte.

He pointed out that Velasco has “no authority” to delay the referral of the complaints, stressing that the same rules apply to Speaker Martin Romualdez, whose influence, he claimed, has played a significant role in the stalemate.

In early January, Velasco hinted at a possible filing of a fourth impeachment complaint coming from a group of congressmen from both majority and minority blocs.

He said the lawmakers aim to expedite the impeachment process by mustering the required votes of one-third or equivalent to 103 votes in order to straightly elevate the petitions to the Senate for trial.

As this developed, Executive Secretary Lucas Bersamin emphasized that Malacañang has no hand in the impeachment complaints against Duterte, saying the matter is the sole prerogative of the House.

Earlier, Gabriela Partylist Arlene Brosas accused Marcos of delaying the impeachment complaints against Duterte in the lower chamber.

“The power to initiate and act on impeachment complaints is the sole prerogative of the House of Representatives,” Bersamin said.

“Out of respect for institutions, the President will not interfere in a matter over which a co-equal branch has exclusive jurisdiction,” he added.