MANILA — Vice President Sara Duterte-Carpio slammed a second impeachment complaint filed against her as baseless and politically motivated, dismissing the move as an abuse of the constitutional process meant to ensure accountability in government.
In a statement posted on social media, Duterte-Carpio said the complaint endorsed by Akbayan Party-list was unsupported by evidence and merely recycled allegations already raised in earlier proceedings.
“Ang impeachment complaint na inendorso ng Akbayan ay isang papel na walang kalakip na kahit anong ebidensiyang magpapatunay sa mga paratang na isinasaad dito,” Duterte-Carpio said.
She described the filing as harassment and questioned the motives of its backers, linking the impeachment push to political ambitions and maneuvering ahead of future elections.
The complaint, endorsed by Akbayan’s Cong. Perci Cendaña and ML Party-list’s Cong. Leila De Lima, was filed by members of Tindig Pilipinas led by Francis “Kiko” Aquino Dee and Sylvia Estrada Claudio, along with other civil society figures. It marks the second impeachment case lodged against the vice president after the one-year constitutional bar lapsed.
Complainants accused Duterte-Carpio of culpable violation of the Constitution, graft and corruption, bribery, betrayal of public trust, and other high crimes.
A previous impeachment complaint filed in December 2024 did not prosper after the Supreme Court ruled that initiating multiple impeachment proceedings against the same official within a one-year period was unconstitutional.
Duterte-Carpio said repeated impeachment attempts against her were part of the political fallout following her resignation from the Cabinet. She also criticized the Senate inquiry into her office’s confidential and intelligence funds, claiming it was designed to build an impeachment case rather than to produce meaningful legislation.
“Paulit-ulit nilang ibinandera ang isyung ‘Mary Grace Piattos’ bilang umano’y bahid ng katiwalian, kahit na sa kabila ng lahat ng imbestigasyon ay wala silang naipakitang kahit isang direktang paglabag sa paggamit ng confidential funds,” she said.
Lawmakers had earlier flagged “Mary Grace Piattos” as a supposed recipient of confidential funds. The Philippine Statistics Authority later said it found no official records of a person bearing that name, though Duterte-Carpio’s camp maintained it could have been a pseudonym./PN
