Sara Duterte stirring political intrigue with baseless claims, says House spox

MANILA, Philippines — House spokesperson Princess Abante slammed Vice President Sara Duterte for diverting attention from her impeachment by spreading unfounded accusations about the lawmakers who signed her impeachment. 

She urged Duterte to stop casting aspersions and stirring political intrigue on House members and be prepared instead to substantiate her claims with evidence.

“Malinaw na walang basehan yung mga allegations ni VP Sara vs the members of the House of Rep na pumirma sa articles of impeachment maliban sa intriga at paninira lamang," she told Philstar.com in a message on June 18. 

(It’s clear that Vice President Sara’s allegations against the members of the House who signed the articles of impeachment have no basis and are nothing but intrigue and character attacks.)

Bribery claim. Duterte, without offering proof, alleged that many of the 215 lawmakers who endorsed her impeachment did so without fully reading the articles of impeachment and that some received budgetary incentives in exchange for their signatures.

“We all know that, first, they did not read the articles of impeachment. Second, many of them received a budget or money in exchange for their signature,” she said at a June 16 press conference in Davao City.

Abante fired back, saying such claims attack the credibility of the House as a whole, not just the lawmakers involved who represent districts and party-lists.

“Hindi pwedeng dinadaan lagi sa intriga ‘yung mga ganitong alegasyon, lalong lalo na ‘pag ang sinasabing alegasyon ay paninira hindi lang sa integrity nung individual na representante na pumirma kundi mismo doon sa institusyon na kinabibilangan ng mga representanteng ito,” she said at a press conference.  

(Allegations like these shouldn’t always be reduced to intrigue, especially when the claims are not just attacks on the integrity of the individual representatives who signed, but on the very institution they belong to.)

Verified and sworn. Abante explained that signing the verified impeachment complaint entails signing and taking an oath. House members who endorsed Duterte’s impeachment had to swear that they read and fully understood the allegations and evidence detailed in the complaint. 

“Nung sila ay pumirma at sumumpa, kasama dito ‘yung pagsasabi na binasa nila, naintindihan nila at pinapatunayan nila na sila ay sang-ayon para ituloy ang impeachment laban kay Vice President Sara at i-transmit ito sa Senado,” she said.

(When they signed and took their oath, that included affirming that they had read, understood and agreed to pursue the impeachment against Vice President Sara and to transmit it to the Senate.)

The House spokesperson also believes that the 215 lawmakers endorsed the impeachment complaint not for personal gain, but as a reflection of their convictions.

She suggested that Duterte may instead be projecting, pointing to a political culture among her allies where favors come with expectations.

This comes as Duterte faces allegations of bribery, supported by the sworn testimonies of three former Department of Education officials who said she gave them cash envelopes during her tenure as secretary unrelated to their salaries or bonuses.

“Baka masyado silang nasanay na lahat ng galaw ng kanilang kampi ay kailangan may bayad pero dito sa Kongreso, dito sa Kamara, hindi ganyan ang mga miyembro ng Kamara na kailangan bayaran para gumalaw,” Abante said. 

(Maybe they’ve gotten too used to the idea that every move by their allies comes with a price but here in Congress, in the House, our members aren’t the kind who need to be paid to act.)

'Receipts' vs speculation. House prosecution panel spokesperson Antonio Bucoy labeled Duterte’s allegations against lawmakers as propaganda, warning that any member who took an oath and lied could face perjury charges.

"Ang impeachment may resibo, ang allegasyon ni VP Sara, wala. Parang AI generated video -— gawa gawa lamang," Abante said. 

(The impeachment has receipts, Vice President Sara’s allegations have none. They’re like an AI-generated video — completely made up.)

In limbo. The fate of Duterte’s impeachment trial remains uncertain, as questions persist over whether the Senate of the 20th Congress can still take it up. 

While some claim impeachments also expire with each Congress, constitutional framers and legal authorities argue that the Senate must proceed with the trial, as it is a continuing body and impeachment is not part of the legislative process.

What is known for now is that the House of Representatives has certified the impeachment complaint as legal and constitutional, and the prosecution panel is seeking clarification from the impeachment court regarding its order to return the articles.