Next steps on Marcos impeachment rap will reveal true motive – Erice

MANILA, Philippines — The next steps on the first impeachment complaint against President Ferdinand R. Marcos Jr. will reveal if it is a serious attempt at exacting accountability or if it is bound to fail, Caloocan 2nd District Rep. Edgar Erice said on Tuesday.

Erice, in a press briefing at the Batasang Pambansa complex said that if the House of Representatives’ Office of the Secretary General rushes to send the complaint filed by lawyer Andre de Jesus to the Office of the Speaker before others can submit their own version, then the true motive will be revealed.

Erice said this amid concerns from critics of the President, particularly Davao City Rep. Paolo “Pulong” Duterte, who claimed that the complaint from de Jesus might just be an attempt to activate the one-year bar rule for impeachment proceedings.

“Ngayon lang pwede nang i-process ‘yon ng ano, mai-refer sa Speaker ng SecGen.  So let’s just wait and see kasi actually hindi ko alam kung ano ‘yong (plano).  Lalabas ‘yong tunay na motive depende sa action ng House dito sa impeachment complaint na ito,” Erice told reporters.

(As early as now this can be processed, this can be referred to the Speaker by the SecGen.  So let’s just wait and see because actually I do not know what their plans are.  But the true motive will come out depending on the action of the House on this impeachment complaint.)

“Kung minadali at na-prevent ‘yong ibang impeachment complaint, eh ‘di ibig sabihin ‘yon ang motive,” he added.

(If they rush in sending the complaint which effectively prevents the other raps, then it only means that itself is the motive.)

Erice also said that the circumstances surrounding de Jesus’ impeachment complaint are dubious, as it puts pressure on other parties seeking to hold Marcos accountable to rush in crafting their complaint.

De Jesus’ move, Erice said, would only be “harmless” if other, stronger petitions are accepted by the House.

“Well, nakakaduda, kasi sabi ko nga, harmless ‘to pag may nag-file this week, harmless ‘tong impeachment complaint na ito, unless na siguro, kung mai-refer kaagad ito, hindi na hintayin ‘yong ibang ano, ifa-file within the week, makikita naman natin kung ano ‘yong motive ‘pag nakapag-file na ‘yong ibang mga complainants,” he said.

(Well, you become doubtful because as I said, this will only be harmless when others file their complaint this week, it will be harmless unless they refer it immediately, without waiting for others.  We will see the motive once other complainants have filed their own petition.)

“Yes, that’s true (one-year bar rule issue), so ano talaga, any other complainants should hurry, should file it.  Dapat nga today eh pero wala naman yata,” he added.

(Yes, that’s true (one-year bar rule issue), so what any other complainants should do is to hurry, they should file it.  They should have done that today but it seems no one would.)

Erice’s statements also came after he was asked why he has been advising other parties to file their impeachment complaints against Marcos within the week — as if he is anticipating that the de Jesus complaint would be processed and initiated already.

If de Jesus’ complaint is initiated, other parties can only pursue impeachment against Marcos after a year, as Article XI, Section 3(5) of the 1987 Constitution states that impeachment proceedings cannot be initiated “against the same official more than once within a period of one year.”

Impeachment complaints are deemed initiated when these are referred to the House committee on justice by the committee on rules. 

When de Jesus filed the complaint against Marcos on Monday, the document was received by House Secretary General Cheloy Garafil.

There is no information yet as of now if Garafil has forwarded it to Speaker Faustino “Bojie” Dy III. 

Once session resumes on Monday, January 26, however, it is possible that the matter can be referred to the committee on rules, and then to the committee on justice.

Under the House Rules of the 19th Congress, which the 20th Congress adopted, any impeachment complaint should be filed before the Office of the Secretary General, which should be immediately referred to the Speaker of the House.

After this, the Speaker “shall have it included in the Order of Business within ten (10) session days from receipt.”  The committee on rules should then refer it to the committee on justice within three (3) session days.

Erice has been critical of the complaint filed by de Jesus.  As early as Monday noon, several lawmakers expect that the impeachment will not prosper, with Erice saying that that the complaint “can easily be dismissed” due to it lacking form and substance.

READ: Several solons doubt impeachment complaint vs Marcos will prosper

In the same press briefing, Erice said only one of the six grounds mentioned by de Jesus — the issue on unprogrammed appropriations and their role in the infrastructure corruption scandal — merits a second look.

The five other grounds mentioned by de Jesus are the following:

• Allegedly ordering and enabling the kidnapping and surrender of former President Rodrigo Duterte to the International Criminal Court (ICC)
• Allegedly being a drug addict which impairs his judgment and leadership
• Allegedly benefitting from kickbacks arising from budget insertions and ghost flood control projects
• Allegedly creating the Independent Commission for Infrastructure to shield corrupt allies
• Allegedly violating the Constitution and betraying public trust for surrendering Duterte to the ICC

While the unprogrammed appropriation issue may be a possible ground for impeachment, Erice said de Jesus’ failure to attach sufficient documents to prove allegations — noting that the entire complaint was only 15 pages.

According to Erice, he has been studying the effects of the fund transfers from the Philippine Deposit Insurance Corporation and the Philippine Health Insurance Corporation that was authorized by the past year’s budget, and this alone has at least 50 pages — thicker than the impeachment complaint submitted by de Jesus.

While de Jesus’ impeachment complaint is the first against Marcos, this is not the only impeachment rap tackled by the House under the current administration.

In late 2024, several groups filed impeachment complaints against Vice President Sara Duterte, over corruption allegations involving the supposed misuse of confidential funds lodged within her offices from 2022 to 2024.

Then on February 5, 2025, 215 members of the House of the 19th Congress signed a fourth impeachment complaint. 

Since 215 members are over one-third of the over 300 House lawmakers, the articles of impeachment were immediately transmitted to the Senate on the same day.

READ: House impeaches Sara Duterte, fast-tracking transmittal to Senate

Under the 1987 Constitution, a trial must begin forthwith if at least one-third of all House members endorse the complaint. 

However, the trial did not push through after the Senate remanded the articles to the House for alleged constitutional infirmities.

Eventually, the Supreme Court deemed the impeachment as unconstitutional for violating the one-year bar rule, as there were three impeachment complaints filed before the fast-track method was initiated. /gsg