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MANILA, Philippines — There are no talks of an impeachment complaint against Vice President Sara Duterte at the House of Representatives, but a lawmaker said that it would not be a surprise if someone actually files a petition given the second-highest official’s recent activities.
During a press briefing on Monday at the Batasang Pambansa complex, Young Guns bloc members were asked about former presidential spokesperson Harry Roque’s prediction that an impeachment complaint against Duterte is in the works.
Roque in a video posted on his official Facebook page said that he heard from his “classmates” in the 17th Congress who are still part of the 19th Congress that a complaint will be filed this week.
READ: ‘Reckless’: House solons slam VP Duterte’s ‘designated survivor’ remark
La Union Rep. Francisco Paolo Ortega V said he has not heard of such talks, claiming that the crystal ball that showed such predictions might just be dirty.
“I have two crystal balls, but I have not seen anything like that, I looked at the left, and then the right, but there’s nothing. We’re sticking to the facts, of course, were sticking to the issues in the House of Representatives, and we have not heard anything like that,” Ortega said.
“So maybe that crystal ball is just dirty, maybe it needs cleaning,” he added.
Ako Bicol party-list Rep. Raul Angelo Bongalon agreed with Ortega, saying that he also has not heard of any possible impeachment complaint against Duterte.
READ: 400 AFP officers securing VP Duterte? That’s excessive, solon says
Bongalon however said it would not be a surprise if someone actually files a complaint.
“So I will echo the statement of Cong. Paolo Ortega, we have not heard about any complaints, but it would not be a surprise if somebody would file an impeachment case against the Vice President. It’s not bewildering, and we would not be shocked if there are actually groups or individuals out to file complaints who want to hold the Vice President accountable,” he said.
Mere gossip
“But as of now, I am saying that we have not heard anything or any news about a possible filing of an impeachment case against the VP. So as of now, his (Roque’s) post will remain a mere gossip,” he added.
Lanao del Sur Rep. Zia Alonto Adiong meanwhile urged the public to separate the truth from hearsay, especially regarding this issue—adding that he does not know what are the intentions behind talks that Duterte might face an impeachment complaint.
“You know, we need to identify what is true news and what is mere gossip. I think we have been too reliant on gossip. I do not know what the intention is, maybe to preempt whatever is the result of this (quad-committee) investigation, to somehow divert the attention, make this issue political, which is not […] really political,” Adiong said.
“They’re trying to make it as a politically-motivated (issue). Remember when we said earlier, this (quadcomm) investigation is not political because this investigation has separate investigations by these committees,” he added.
Duterte has been facing criticisms recently over her statements, especially since she resigned from President Ferdinand Marcos Jr.’s cabinet last June 19.
When Duterte announced that she would not be attending Marcos’ third State of the Nation Address and was instead appointing herself as the designated survivor, several lawmakers and observers felt the joke was done in bad taste — as if a veiled threat that something wrong might happen during the event.
Then, when Duterte complained about the removal of 75 police officers from her security detail, past and present solons were quick to remind her that she still had over 300, with former Office of the Vice President spokesperson Barry Gutierrez saying that this was still three times greater than what ex-vice president Leni Robredo had.
Duterte also drew flak for supposedly making it appear that her security was depleted when the Armed Forces of the Philippines said that 400 military officers were securing her.
According to Santa Rosa City Rep. Dan Fernandez, having this number might be excessive already.
Several media outfits, including INQUIRER.net, have asked the Office of the Vice President for their response to the criticisms hurled at Duterte, but they have not issued any response as of now.