Sara faces 3rd impeach complaint

Religious leaders, priests, nuns, and lawyers filed a third impeachment complaint against Vice President Sara Duterte at the House of Representatives on Monday, submitting a 98-page document endorsed by Deputy Minority Leader Leila de Lima. The complaint was formally received by House Secretary General Cheloy Garafil just after noon.

The filing was led by lawyer Amando Virgil Ligutan, who previously filed one of the impeachment complaints against Duterte in December 2024 during the 19th Congress. “Here we go again. This site is familiar since we were also here last year,” Ligutan said.

The complaint alleges that Duterte misused around P612.5 million in confidential funds and engaged in graft, corruption, bribery, plunder, and other high crimes, including allegedly corrupting officials of the Department of Education during her tenure as its secretary.

Ligutan described the charges as citing a culpable violation of the Constitution and a betrayal of public trust.

Earlier this month, two separate impeachment complaints were filed against Duterte in the 20th Congress. On 2 February, 45 activists and former Makabayan lawmakers submitted the first complaint, followed minutes later by 17 civil society and religious group members.

The first complaint was endorsed by Makabayan bloc solons, including ACT Teachers Partylist Rep. Antonio Tinio, Gabriela Partylist Rep. Sarah Elago, and Kabataan Partylist Rep. Renee Co. The second was backed by De Lima and Akbayan Partylist Rep. Perci Cendaña.

Ligutan’s filing is significant as the first complaint lodged after the 5 February date referenced by the Supreme Court (SC) in relation to the one-year filing bar for impeachment complaints against impeachable officials. Previous complaints against Duterte were either archived or declared unconstitutional by the High Court. The SC has yet to clarify which reckoning date applies for the current filings.

Vice President Duterte’s legal team said the new complaint comes as no surprise.

“We have nothing further to add beyond the statement we issued last week. The filing of additional complaints was anticipated by the defense team,” said Atty. Michael Poa. “For now, we will continue to monitor developments and address these complaints through the appropriate constitutional processes.”

This latest complaint underscores the continuing legal and political scrutiny Duterte faces, as the allegations focus on misuse of public funds, corruption, and betrayal of public trust, adding to the already ongoing impeachment efforts against the Vice President.