Sara Duterte: ‘Unfair’ to include family in impeachment proceedings

MANILA, Philippines — Vice President Sara Duterte said it is “unfair” to involve her family in impeachment proceedings against her, emphasizing that they have a right to privacy as ordinary individuals and private citizens.

The vice president made the remarks in an interview with members of the Filipino community on May 5, as she visited her father in The Hague, Netherlands where the former president is under detention by the International Criminal Court (ICC) over his administration’s war on drugs.

READ: VP Duterte: Father well, healthy in ICC custody

“Well, I think it’s unfair. I think it’s unfair because they are not the Vice President and they are not the ones being impeached.” Duterte said in mixed Filipino and English, when asked what she thinks of alleged detractors involving her family in the impeachment cases hurled against her.

“And like the spouses and children of congressmen, they have the right to privacy, being ordinary individuals and private citizens.”

Her family members, including her husband, lawyer Manases Carpio, have been mentioned in the proceedings, particularly in connection with financial records examined by lawmakers during the House committee on justice’s clarificatory hearings on Duterte’s Statements of Assets, Liabilities and Net Worth (SALN) and alleged “unexplained wealth.”

Carpio earlier filed criminal complaints against officials of the Anti-Money Laundering Council (AMLC) and select lawmakers who are members of the justice panel for alleged violations of the Anti-Money Laundering Act, Bank Secrecy Law, and Data Privacy Act over the alleged disclosure of his bank records during impeachment hearings.

READ: Carpio probed by House panel due to marriage to VP Duterte – solons

Lawmakers said, however, that several properties and assets acquired by a couple after their marriage are considered conjugal property, or owned by both individuals.

Because there is no information as to whether Duterte and Carpio are legally separated, they are considered a couple and thus subject to the committee’s scrutiny.

Further, the committee chairperson, Batangas Representative Gerville Luistro, argued that it was the AMLC report, not the bank records of the couple that were requested in the hearings.

The committee report containing the Articles of Impeachment against the vice president was introduced to the House of Representatives’ plenary on Tuesday for further discussion.

Father unaware of impeachment issue

Meanwhile, the vice president also said her father has not been informed about the second impeachment bid against her.

Asked whether the former president was aware, she replied: “I did not tell him about the impeachment or what happened in the House of Representatives.”

She said that knowing the issue would be of no value to the former president since he is alone and may only cause him to worry.

“So he does not know that there is a second possible impeachment that may happen. Because I think he does not need to know that kind of bad news,” she said, adding that she is shielding him from issue due to his age.

READ: Articles of Impeachment vs Sara Duterte now at House plenary

“That is not appropriate for an 81-year-old… We are also thinking that he might even reach the end of his life there, that he might die inside detention.”

“So what he should remember and think about are happy things, not the nonsense, corruption, and abuses of congressmen and other politicians, including the administration,” she added.

The former president is facing charges of crimes against humanity before the ICC.

The former Davao City mayor and ex-president is accused of being criminally responsible for the brutal killings, particularly of 78 individuals, under his so-called war on drugs./dp