Vice President Sara Duterte is being urged to refrain from “abusing legal processes” by seeking the intervention of the Supreme Court (SC) and the Ombudsman — with the help of her allies — to block her looming impeachment trial in the Senate.

House Deputy Majority Leader Paolo Ortega V made the call on Sunday after Duterte and a group of Mindanao lawyers petitioned the high court to halt the impeachment proceedings, citing alleged unconstitutionality, including a violation of the one-year bar rule.

The petitions came shortly after the filing of falsification of legislative documents and graft charges against House leaders in connection with the alleged unlawful insertion of P241 billion in the bicameral report of this year’s budget — a move seen by respondents as retaliation for Duterte’s impeachment.

“This is a clear abuse of legal processes. Instead of addressing the serious allegations of corruption and misuse of public funds, the Vice President and her camp are wasting the time of our courts with frivolous cases designed to harass those who simply did their duty,” Ortega said.

The La Union lawmaker added, “We see this for what it is — an attempt to intimidate the House, divert attention from the issues, and create noise to mislead the public.”

Duterte and a group of Mindanao lawyers allied with her father, former president Rodrigo Duterte, asked the SC last week to issue a temporary restraining order (TRO) against the impeachment trial, which, if it leads to a conviction, could permanently bar her from holding public office.

They argued that the articles of impeachment submitted by the House to the Senate were defective and unconstitutional, and should be nullified.

Duterte asserted that House leaders and Secretary General Reginald Velasco committed “grave abuse of discretion” by withholding the first three impeachment complaints against her to circumvent the constitutional one-year bar rule.

She accused Velasco of deliberately freezing the impeachment process by waiting for the fourth complaint, making the constitutional one-year ban “futile and meaningless.”

The fourth impeachment complaint was initiated and signed by 215 lawmakers during the last session day of Congress on 5 February, just two months after the first three separate complaints were filed in December.

Counter-charges amid 'blank items'

Before going to the SC, Duterte allies, led by Davao del Norte Rep. Pantaleon Alvarez, filed charges against House leaders, including Speaker Martin Romualdez, for allegedly inserting P241 billion in “blank items” in the bicam report of the 2025 budget after it was ratified by both houses of Congress.

They also called for the preventive suspension of the lawmakers involved.

Alvarez denied that the filing of charges was meant to distract from Duterte’s impeachment, but House leaders countered that it was a deliberate attempt to disrupt Congress ahead of trial preparations.

“These intimidation tactics will not succeed… We will not allow anyone — no matter how powerful — to evade scrutiny,” Ortega said.

Ortega also argued that “no amount of legal theatrics can erase the facts” regarding questionable transactions in Duterte’s use of confidential funds and in the Department of Education under her leadership.

“If the Vice President is truly innocent, she should face the charges head-on and explain herself to the Filipino people, instead of resorting to harassment tactics. The public deserves the truth, not distractions,” he added.

Earlier, Senior Deputy Speaker Aurelio Gonzales, Deputy Speaker David Suarez, and Assistant Majority Leader Jude Acidre branded Duterte’s petition to the SC as a “desperate attempt to evade accountability” and a blatant effort to undermine the trial before it formally begins.

They also argued that if Duterte’s camp is confident they can disprove the corruption allegations, there is no need to seek court intervention.