Luistro: VP Duterte can be impeached for acts done as education secretary

Even for acts done as secretary of education, Vice President Sara Z. Duterte can be impeached, House Committee on Justice chairperson Atty. Gerville “Jinky Bitrics” Luistro said Wednesday.

Luistro made the remark as she addressed members of her committee at the start of the third day of hearings on the impeachment complaints against the Vice President, referring to statements raised by Cagayan de Oro Rep. Rufus Rodriguez during Tuesday’s deliberations.

Luistro said Rodriguez raised a constitutional question: “Can a Vice President be impeached for acts done while concurrently serving as Secretary of Education?”

“The response from several members was clear: public trust is indivisible. You cannot divide accountability depending on which title is convenient. The Constitution speaks to the office — not the label,” she said.

She recalled that Manila Rep. Bienvenido Abante Jr. “gave us one of the most memorable moments of the hearing.”

“He raised two hands and said, in essence, one hand may act separately from the other — but there is only one brain directing both hands. Dalawang kamay, isang utak. Isang opisyal, isang pananagutan,” she said.

Rodriguez, during Tuesday’s deliberations, urged the committee to disregard accusations against Duterte when she was education secretary, arguing that she was not impeachable as head of the Department of Education (DepEd).

The Vice President is accused of misusing ₱112.5 million in DepEd confidential and intelligence funds and allegedly bribing agency officials.

Luistro also recalled references to “premonition” during Monday’s discussions and to “imagination” in Tuesday’s hearing.

Alluding to remarks made by Quezon City Rep. Jesus “Bong” Suntay, Luistro said, “At one point, an example involving a public figure seen in a mall was offered to illustrate the harmlessness of imagination. I will not dwell on that illustration. I will simply say this: This committee is not a forum of fantasy. Hindi ito sinehan. Hindi ito komedya. Ito ay pagdinig sa pananagutan.”

“Let me say this clearly: Impeachment is not about promotion. It is not about imagination. It is about constitutional accountability,” she declared.

Luistro also reminded her colleagues of their task in considering the remaining two impeachment complaints against the Vice President.

“At this stage, we are not deciding guilt. Hindi pa ito hatol. The question before us is narrower but crucial: Are the allegations — if assumed true for purposes of this stage — sufficient in substance to warrant further proceedings?” she said.

“If the accusations are speculative, we must dismiss them. If they are trivial, we must reject them. But if they raise serious constitutional questions about public funds, abuse of authority, and violations of public trust, then we must not close the door prematurely,” she added.

The lawmaker said she hopes that by the end of Wednesday’s deliberations, the committee “will consider all the arguments from day one until today, from 2 March until 4 March, and be prepared to vote on the sufficiency in substance of both the third and the fourth impeachment complaints.”

She stressed that the impeachment process involving Duterte “is not about personalities.”

“This is not about political convenience. Hindi ito laban ng kampo. Ito ay usapin ng Konstitusyon,” she said.

“History will not ask whether this was comfortable. History will ask whether we were faithful to our oath. Kung sapat ang reklamo para umusad ang proseso, dapat natin itong ituloy,” Luistro said.

She added: “If the constitutional threshold is met, we should not be afraid to let the constitutional process move forward.”

“Now let us proceed — calm but firm, fair but fearless,” Luistro told her colleagues.