‘Up to Congress’: Palace distances from VP Sara impeachment raps

By Darryl John Esguerra, Philippine News Agency

Palace Press Officer Claire Castro (PNA photo by Darryl John Esguerra)

MANILA – Malacañang on Monday said it would leave to Congress the evaluation of newly filed impeachment complaints against Vice President Sara Duterte, stressing that the allegations raised were largely similar to earlier charges.

Palace Press Officer Claire Castro said Malacañang had no role in the filing of the complaints and would respect the constitutional process.

“I believe they are the same, almost the same allegations made even before when the first impeachment complaint was filed… But even if, we do not have any hand, we are not responsible to the filing of those complaints or impeachment complaints,” Castro said in a Palace briefing.

“So it’s up to the Congress to evaluate and decide with regard to the subject matter,” she added.

Earlier Monday, two groups filed separate impeachment complaints against Duterte following a Supreme Court ruling that last year’s impeachment articles against her were unconstitutional.

One complaint was endorsed by Makabayan lawmakers and former legislators, citing alleged betrayal of public trust, including issues raised during deliberations on the 2026 national budget.

Another complaint, backed by civil society groups and opposition lawmakers, alleged culpable violations of the Constitution, graft and corruption, bribery, and other high crimes.

Asked whether Malacañang was concerned that simultaneous impeachment complaints against the country’s top officials could signal political instability to the international community, Castro said impeachment complaints against President Ferdinand R. Marcos Jr. affect not just him but the nation as a whole.

A House panel earlier found the two impeachment complaints against Marcos “sufficient in form.”

“Unang-una pong sinabi, ang pagsasampa po ng impeachment complaint laban po sa Pangulo, hindi pangulo lamang ang maaapektuhan nito kundi buong bansa at pati ekonomiya (First of all, the filing of an impeachment complaint against the President does not affect only the President but the entire country and even the economy),” she said.

Castro added that the President remains concerned about the broader implications of impeachment proceedings, even as he maintains confidence in his innocence.

‘Stronger’

The impeachment complaint against Duterte was endorsed by Mamamayang Liberal Party-list Rep. Leila de Lima and Akbayan Party-list Rep. Perci Cendaña.

In a statement, de Lima said they believe that there are sufficient grounds and impeachable offenses that could be proven during the hearings of the Committee on Justice.

“I once served as the spokesperson for the complainants. As spokesperson then, we already saw and reviewed the evidence of the complaint, because it basically and essentially raises the same grounds as the previous complaint – only stronger and more streamlined,” she said

She also pointed out that the Supreme Court decision voiding the first impeachment complaint is based only on “technicality.”

“Wala pa tayo sa merit o sa mga akusasyon na hanggang ngayon ay hindi pa rin nasasagot ni Sara Duterte (We are not yet on the merit or on the accusations which until now remain unanswered by Sara Duterte),” she said.