VICE President Sara Duterte is now facing her fourth impeachment complaint in the House of Representatives, this time centered on serious allegations of unexplained wealth and discrepancies in her Statements of Assets, Liabilities, and Net Worth (SALNs).
The complaint, endorsed by Representatives Bienvenido “Benny” Abante Jr. and Francisco Paolo Ortega V, accuses Duterte of culpable violation of the Constitution, betrayal of public trust, graft and corruption, bribery, and other high crimes. This latest filing intensifies the scrutiny on Duterte’s financial dealings and raises critical questions about her adherence to constitutional transparency requirements.
At the heart of the impeachment complaint are claims that Duterte failed to fully disclose assets, bank accounts, cash holdings, and property transactions in her SALNs.
Complainant Atty. Nathaniel G. Cabrera is seeking a forensic review of Duterte’s financial records to determine whether public funds were illicitly converted into private assets and whether her declared net worth accurately reflects her true financial position. These allegations are further fueled by concerns over irregular confidential fund disbursements amounting to at least ₱612.5 million from December 2022 to the third quarter of 2023, covering both the Office of the Vice President (OVP) and the Department of Education (DepEd).
The complaint highlights specific instances of alleged financial irregularities, including the rapid encashment of ₱125 million in December 2022, supposedly liquidated within just 11 days.
Subsequent findings by the Commission on Audit (COA) flagged irregularities, leading to notices of suspension and disallowance covering ₱73.287 million in questioned expenditures. The allegations also point to fabricated or defective receipts, unverifiable payees, and duplicated entries, along with sworn affidavits describing the transport of large sums of cash in duffel bags.
Beyond the financial allegations, the impeachment complaint reiterates earlier accusations that Duterte publicly admitted to having “asked a person” to kill President Ferdinand R. Marcos Jr., First Lady Liza Araneta Marcos, and former Speaker Ferdinand Martin G. Romualdez.
The House Committee on Justice is now urged to conduct a thorough investigation, issue subpoenas for financial and audit records, and, if warranted, transmit Articles of Impeachment to the Senate for trial. With four impeachment complaints now pending, the House faces the critical task of determining whether the allegations meet the constitutional threshold for impeachment under Article XI of the 1987 Constitution.
