SARA DUTERTE’S IMPEACHMENT

MANILA – Senator Rodante Marcoleta today moved for the outright dismissal of the impeachment complaint against Vice President Sara Duterte, citing a recent Supreme Court (SC) decision that declared the case unconstitutional.

During a Senate plenary session, Marcoleta initiated the debate on the impeachment case by arguing that the high court’s unanimous ruling has effectively stripped the Senate of jurisdiction. “The Supreme Court has already spoken,” he said in a privilege speech. “It says the complaint is unconstitutional, is void ab initio…The Senate never acquired jurisdiction over this. It is immediately executory.”

However, Senate Minority Leader Vicente “Tito” Sotto III immediately challenged Marcoleta’s motion, emphasizing that while the SC’s decision is immediately executory, it is not yet final. Sotto pointed out that the House of Representatives has already filed a motion for reconsideration (MR) with the SC, and a rushed dismissal by the Senate would be premature. “Let us allow and give chance to the Supreme Court to rectify its decision,” Sotto urged.

Sotto ended his interpellation by moving to table Marcoleta’s motion to dismiss, noting that a “motion to table is a higher precedence.”

This marks the first time in the current 20th Congress that the impeachment case against Duterte has been discussed on the Senate floor. The SC’s decision, reached with a 13-0-2 vote, found the articles of impeachment unconstitutional, citing violations of the one-year rule and Duterte’s right to due process. The high court, however, clarified that it was not absolving Duterte of the charges and that a new impeachment complaint could be filed in 2026.

The House’s motion for reconsideration, filed earlier this week, asks the SC to reverse its decision, arguing for the separation of powers and the exclusive right of the House to prosecute and the Senate to try impeachment cases.