Abante says House has ‘more than enough’ votes to transmit Sara Duterte impeachment

Impeachment endorser and Manila Rep. Bienvenido “Benny” Abante Jr. expressed confidence that the House of Representatives can muster the numbers to transmit the impeachment complaint against Vice President Sara Duterte to the Senate, saying the chamber has “more than enough” votes to clear the one-third threshold once the case reaches the plenary.

“More than enough, yes,” Abante said during the Saturday Media Forum at Dapo Restaurant in Quezon City, when asked whether the House has the numbers.

Abante, chair of the House Committee on Human Rights and co-chair of the House Quad Committee, outlined what he described as the complaint’s expected route: referral to the Committee on Justice, deliberations, and eventually a plenary vote that will determine whether the Senate convenes as an impeachment court.

“The Committee on Rules will refer it to the Committee on Justice. The Committee on Justice will deliberate on it, maybe for two or three days. After that, it will be put to a vote in the plenary. Ang kailangan lang naman one-third,” Abante said.

Lawyer Nathaniel G. Cabrera filed the fourth verified impeachment complaint against Duterte, endorsed by Abante and Deputy Speaker Paolo Ortega V.

Abante noted that out of 311 House members, only 105 votes — one-third — are needed to transmit the complaint to the Senate.

“In the first impeachment complaint, more than 200 congressmen signed. It might not be the same number now, but it only takes one-third of the members of the House to let it pass,” he said.

He added that once approved, the complaint will be transmitted directly to the Senate.

Abante said House action will also be guided by Supreme Court rulings, particularly on the constitutional one-year bar and the counting of session days.

The fourth complaint centers on allegations that Duterte failed to fully disclose assets in her Statements of Assets, Liabilities and Net Worth (SALNs) and may have amassed wealth disproportionate to her lawful income. It accuses her of culpable violation of the Constitution, betrayal of public trust, graft and corruption, bribery, and other high crimes.

The complaint also links the alleged unexplained wealth to questioned confidential fund disbursements amounting to at least P612.5 million from December 2022 to the third quarter of 2023, involving both the Office of the Vice President and the Department of Education.

It cites the rapid encashment of P125 million in December 2022 — allegedly liquidated within 11 days — and subsequent findings by the Commission on Audit, which issued notices of suspension and disallowance covering P73.287 million in questioned expenditures.