Impeachment talks vs Marcos heat up

An impeachment complaint potentially anchored on the grounds of betrayal of public trust may be filed against President Ferdinand Marcos Jr. once Congress resumes session on 26 January, an opposition lawmaker disclosed Sunday.

Senior Deputy Minority Leader Edgar Erice confirmed to the DAILY TRIBUNE that a group supportive of Vice President Sara Duterte would file the impeachment case against the President, which would be jointly endorsed by some members of the majority and independent lawmakers.

The unnamed group, he said, initially reached out to him to solicit his support in endorsing the complaint, but he turned it down.

“They are pro-Sara group…They told me that there are [lawmakers] from the majority and independents who would endorse it. No one from the minority was mentioned,” he said in a message.

To recall, the independent bloc was initially composed of the fiercest critics of former House Speaker Martin Romualdez. They are Davao Reps. Paolo Duterte, Omar Duterte, Isidro Ungab, PPP Rep. Harold Duterte, Navotas Rep. Toby Tiangco, Bacolod Rep. Albee Benitez and Cebu Rep. Duke Frasco.

This is not the first time Marcos has been threatened with impeachment.

In May last year, Duterte Youth Partylist founder Ronald Cardema and his wife, former Rep. Marie Cardema, filed what could be the first impeachment case against Marcos, accusing him of betrayal of public trust for allowing the arrest and transfer of former president Rodrigo Duterte to the International Criminal Court.

The filing, however, hit a roadblock as the then Secretary General Reginald Velasco, who is mandated to receive the petition, was nowhere to be found, with his staff refusing to accept it, the couple claimed.

Erice said it remains unclear if the new impeachment complaint will reach the threshold of three-thirds of the entire House to advance it to the Senate for trial, given that Marcos enjoys supermajority support from the lower chamber.

Squandered budget

Nevertheless, he said petitioners will anchor the impeachment complaint on betrayal of public trust, citing Marcos’ “gross inexcusable negligence” in thoroughly vetting the three recent budgets passed under his administration, particularly the allegedly graft-ridden 2025 General Appropriations Act.

“Because for three years, he pretty much let Congress squander his budget. He didn’t do anything, nor did his Cabinet,” Erice said in a separate radio interview.

He attributed this to alleged connivance among Marcos allies in Congress and Cabinet members in manipulating the budgets, as well as alleged corruption in flood control projects that further tainted the administration.

Malacañang shrugged off the talk of an impeachment move, saying it will not give due credence to “unsubstantiated statements.”

“We have seen this statement made by a lawmaker. At this point, these are unsubstantiated statements allegedly coming from the supporters of a certain politician,” Palace Press Officer Undersecretary Claire Castro told reporters Sunday.

She said Marcos remains committed to leading and producing results for the Filipino people.

“He respects the existing constitutional processes and believes that any actions taken by members of Congress will be driven by facts, the law, and national interest. The administration will not speculate on rumors or political maneuverings,” Castro added.

Administration lawmakers — Deputy Speaker Paolo Ortega and Lanao del Sur Rep. Zia Adiong — also downplayed the alleged talks, suggesting it was political retaliation.

“Impeachment is not a press release. It is a constitutional process that demands proof,” Ortega stressed. “We will examine any complaint based on the Constitution and evidence — nothing more, nothing less.”

Adiong said impeachment should never be used as a political tool and must be grounded on grave and provable offenses, not rumors and political talk.

Sara also in crosshairs

The impeachment talk against Marcos came as Duterte may also face a revived effort to remove her from office once the one-year bar lapses on 6 February.

The Makabayan bloc, which comprised the original petitioners of the botched impeachment complaint against Duterte last year, has been vocal in reviving the petitions.

This followed concerns that Duterte still has not addressed questions on the legality of the use of her multi-million-peso confidential funds after the Supreme Court unanimously struck down the impeachment complaint as unconstitutional for violating the one-year bar rule.

Duterte was slapped with three impeachment complaints in barely two weeks in December last year, but was only officially impeached on 5 February after 215 House members endorsed a fourth complaint. The votes were more than double the required one-third threshold, which bypassed committee hearings and allowed the case to be transmitted directly to the Senate for trial.

The Supreme Court decision, however, said the House trampled upon Duterte’s right to due process by expediting proceedings, depriving her of the opportunity to counter allegations.