Charter allows twin impeachment

Holding impeachment proceedings against President Ferdinand Marcos Jr. and Vice President Sara Duterte at the same time is possible and permitted by the Constitution, according to a legal expert.

Senate President Vicente “Tito” Sotto III vowed to immediately act on any impeachment complaints that may be transmitted to the Senate.

“One thing is certain, as Senate President, I will act on it with dispatch, forthwith!” Sotto said.

While the previous impeachment process was directed against Duterte, there is a clamor now for the filing of a similar action against Marcos.

Malacañang indicated that Marcos is ready to face any impeachment complaint against him.

As for Duterte, she said there’s no surprise over plans to refile an impeachment complaint against her, saying it was used as a “bargaining chip” by some legislators for the passage of the 2026 national budget.

The House of Representatives impeached Duterte in February last year, with over 200 lawmakers endorsing the complaints that included betrayal of public trust, culpable violation of the Constitution, graft and corruption, and other high crimes.

The Senate, then under the leadership of former Senate President Francis “Chiz” Escudero, later voted to archive the articles of impeachment against the Vice President.

Sotto, however, asked, “Are there any impeachment complaints? Will the House approve both?”

Article XI, Section 3(4) of the 1987 Constitution states: “In case the verified complaint or resolution of impeachment is filed by at least one-third of all the members of the House, the same shall constitute the Articles of Impeachment, and a trial by the Senate shall forthwith proceed.”

According to former Integrated Bar of the Philippines president and constitutional expert Domingo Cayosa, there is no constitutional prohibition against the filing of two impeachment complaints simultaneously.

“They may be filed successively or simultaneously. The scheduling — when these will be discussed or assessed by the Committee on Justice and voted upon by the plenary of the lower house — is up to them. There is technically and legally no prohibition. Can it be done? Yes,” he said.

Cayosa, in a radio interview, urged the Supreme Court to resolve the questions regarding last year’s impeachment of VP Duterte to clear the way for any new proceedings.

The Supreme Court had declared the impeachment proceedings against VP Duterte unconstitutional, finding the articles void for violation of the one-year bar and due process, and affirmed that such political processes must still comply with constitutional requirements.

The SC decision halted the Senate proceedings and set limits on future filings.

“This very controversial decision of the Supreme Court has a motion for reconsideration. The problem is that, to date, the SC has not resolved that simple motion for reconsideration. And now impeachment complaints are once again being filed,” the veteran lawyer pointed out.

“Perhaps we should knock on the doors of the Supreme Court justices because they, too, must be accountable to the people. Not only the executive branch or the lawmakers, but the justices are also public officials.”

Hesitation evident

Cayosa said the delay may indicate that the Supreme Court is hesitating. “When their controversial decision came out, many pointed out its errors. Of course, that has to be resolved.”

“The Supreme Court has fallen short here. It would be good to demand answers from them — to ask them to explain to the people why, until now, this has not been resolved,” Cayosa added.

Cayosa, nonetheless, qualified that regarding the possibility of a twin impeachment, “with respect to the President, he has greater control or influence over Congress because he is the political leader.”

“Politically and pragmatically, members of Congress know that he is the President, who has significant control over government resources and the executive branch’s actions. He still wields great influence,” Catosa said.

As for the Vice President, her influence has declined, especially since her popular father cannot return home because he is detained and facing charges at the International Criminal Court in the Netherlands.

“Perhaps not yet, but as the 2028 elections draw nearer, if congressmen sense that she has a strong chance of becoming president, they may shift their support. It is still two years before the election, so many things can still happen,” Cayosa added.

“These are realities. Congressmen and senators are politicians. They know how to weigh things — perhaps even better than we do. That is why they win elections. That is the political dynamic,” he underscored.