Photo courtesy of Inday Sara Duterte/Facebook.
A new impeachment complaint against Vice President Sara Duterte was filed on Monday at the House of Representatives, marking the third petition submitted this month seeking her removal from office.
The 98-page complaint was turned over to the Office of the Secretary General and carried the endorsement of Mamamayang Liberal Party-list Rep. Leila de Lima. It was backed by members of the clergy and lawyers linked to the Integrated Bar of the Philippines.
Complainants accused Duterte of culpable violations of the Constitution, betrayal of public trust, and other high crimes tied largely to the alleged misuse of confidential funds during her tenure as Vice President and as secretary of the Department of Education.
The petition cited more than P500 million in confidential funds released to the Office of the Vice President from 2022 to 2023 and P112.5 million allocated to the Department of Education in 2023, when Duterte headed the agency.
It further alleged bribery of education officials, accumulation of unexplained wealth, and failure to fully declare assets and interests in her statement of assets, liabilities and net worth, as well as acts amounting to political destabilization.
The filing followed two earlier complaints this month. The first was submitted by the Makabayan coalition on Feb. 2, while another was lodged by civil society groups later the same day, both centering on confidential fund spending and alleged abuses of power.
The groups behind the latest complaint included Catholic priests, Protestant pastors, nuns, lay advocates, and private lawyers, presenting the filing as a collective call for accountability.
Duterte’s camp said it was not surprised by the development. Her lawyer and spokesperson Michael Poa said they were monitoring the situation and would respond through established constitutional processes.
The Vice President earlier branded impeachment efforts against her as politically motivated, singling out critics she said were using the issue to advance personal and electoral interests.
Malacañang distanced itself from the complaint but reiterated that allegations of corruption should be addressed through legal channels. “The president said that whatever needs to be studied should be handled through the proper process—the rule of law must prevail, and anyone who must be held accountable should be held accountable,” Palace press officer Claire Castro said.