MANILA – Vice President Sara Duterte-Carpio said the plan of the House of Representatives to impeach her was not surprising, especially after she left the Marcos administration’s Cabinet.
According to Duterte-Carpio, some friends from the Lower House have told her about the plan of lawmakers to unseat her as the second highest elected official in the country.
“That is expected,” Duterte-Carpio said in an interview in Davao City. “Palagi namang pinag-uusapan ng mga members of House of Representatives ang impeachment. Naririnig naman namin ‘yun base sa mga kinukuwento ng mga kaibigan dun sa loob.”
“Expected naman natin ‘yan. Mainit nga ang pulitika ngayon dito sa ating bayan, pero ang inuulit ko sana hindi madala ‘yung ating mga kababayan sa ingay ng pulitika at tutukan talaga natin ang tunay na problema ng bayan,” she added.
Recently, the House’s appropriations committee has approved a motion to issue a subpoena on the Commission on Audit (COA) reports on the use of the confidential funds of the Office of the Vice President (OVP) and the Department of Education (DepEd) during fiscal year 2022 to 2023.
The said move, which was raised by ACT Teachers party-list’s Cong. France Castro, is believed to be part of the lawmaker’s process to find probable cause to file an impeachment against the Vice President.
The impeachment process for an elected official begins at the House of Representatives when a complaint is filed by any member of the chamber or by a citizen, endorsed by a member of the House.
A one-third vote of all members is required to approve the impeachment complaint before it is sent to the Senate for trial.
Meanwhile, Duterte-Carpio also admitted that she does not have any communication with President Ferdinand “Bongbong” Marcos Jr. since she tendered her resignation from her post on DepEd and NTF-ELCAC.
“Kamusta ang relationship namin (ni Marcos)? Wala akong label sa relationship namin ngayon. Hindi na kami nagkikita at hindi na rin kami nagkakausap,” the Vice President said./PN
