Civil society organizations on Monday appeared before the secretary-general of the House of Representatives to file the first-ever impeachment complaint against Vice President Sara Duterte.
Endorsed by Akbayan Party-list Representative Percival Cendaña before 3:00 p.m., the complaint was made by religious leaders, sectoral representatives, and the loved ones of victims of the bloody drug war.
“Today, I formally endorse the first-ever and historic impeachment complaint filed by our citizens against Vice President Sara Duterte,” Cendaña said.
Alongside the complainants were former senator Leila de Lima, former Quezon City lawmaker Jose Christopher Belmonte, former presidential peace adviser Ging Deles, Catholic priests Robert Reyes and Flavie Villanueva, and members of the Magdalo group.
Talks of impeachment stem from the ongoing investigation by the House Committee on Good Government and Public Accountability into Duterte’s alleged misuse of confidential funds from both the Office of the Vice President (OVP) and the Department of Education, during her tenure as Education Secretary.
The tipping point, however, came after Duterte made death threats against President Ferdinand Marcos Jr., First Lady Liza Araneta-Marcos, and House Speaker Ferdinand Martin Romualdez during an online conference.
These threats were allegedly made after her visit to detained OVP chief of staff, Atty. Zuleika Lopez.