Marcos calls impeachment complaints a 'distraction'

President Ferdinand Marcos Jr. on Friday described the impeachment complaints filed against him as a distraction that hindered him from doing his job.

“I’m glad the impeachment complaint against me has been finished. And as the statement that we’ve made earlier, I’m happy with that, and we can get on with our work because these things are distractions from the things that we are doing,” the President said during an ambush interview at the groundbreaking ceremony of the Pamantasan ng Lungsod ng Maynila–College of Allied Health Sciences Building in Manila.

The two impeachment complaints against the Chief Executive were dismissed by the House Committee on Justice on Wednesday after they were deemed insufficient in substance.

“Although I wasn’t very worried because I saw the impeachment complaint, and I knew that I would be alright in terms of the proceedings. Wala naman, there were no real grounds for the impeachment. It’s a political move, as usual,” he said.

On Sara’s impeachment complaint

Meanwhile, Marcos said he would not comment on the impeachment complaint filed against Vice President Sara Duterte, which was transmitted to House Speaker Faustino “Bojie” G. Dy III on 5 February, as disclosed by House Secretary General Cheloy Garafil on Friday.

“I have no reaction. Hindi ko trabaho yan, trabaho yan ng House. Pabayaan nyo silang magtrabaho, and I’m sure, they would handle it properly. Let’s let them do their jobs,” the President said.

According to the complaints, the Vice President was accused of betrayal of public trust over the alleged misuse of P612.5 million in confidential funds. A second complaint cited multiple grounds, including betrayal of public trust, culpable violation of the Constitution, the high crime of murder and conspiracy to commit murder, and graft and corruption.