Lawmakers backing VP impeach raps know the risks–Puno
The head of the National Unity Party (NUP) said the majority of its 55 members in the House of Representatives are expected to endorse the articles of impeachment against Vice President Sara Duterte despite the possible political backlash they will reap in the 2028 elections.
Deputy Speaker Ronaldo Puno said some of the NUP members are voting for impeachment even though they are from Mindanao, long considered to be a Duterte bailiwick, or their respective districts have a significant number of Iglesia ni Cristo (INC) members who are known to vote as a bloc.
“The problem is, of course, in Mindanao. Our members find themselves in a bind there because, when they ask around, everybody says no (to impeachment). That’s just the fact of the matter,” the Antipolo City congressman said in an online media forum on Wednesday.
Barangay-level sentiments
“They will call their barangays and everybody is saying no—and never mind now kung tuyuan sila (if they are denied) projects. They don’t care if they are made to suffer over the next two years. They just really cannot accept the impeachment of their Vice President,” he added.
As to the INC, Puno said the sect had maintained a strong position opposing Duterte’s impeachment, but some NUP members no longer mind if their decision will affect their chances in the next elections.
“In other areas, as you know the Iglesia ni Cristo has a very strong position about this matter and it continues to be there. There are many districts where there’s a very high percentage of voters from that church, so they of course have an important voice also in their districts,” Puno said.
“Of the more than 30 (NUP members) that are already voting yes, I would say at least half of those are going to be seriously affected in the next election if they continue to vote yes. So I think it’s a tribute to their firmness, their steadfastness of purpose that they continue to say yes in spite of warnings from their constituents who belong to that church about what will happen if they vote that way,” he added.
Change of tone
In a separate statement issued by the NUP on Wednesday, Puno said the party would continue to support the Marcos administration but would allow members to cast a “conscience vote” on Duterte’s impeachment.
On Feb. 25, however, Puno released a statement saying party members were unlikely to vote in favor of Duterte’s impeachment since they had not seen any new evidence presented in support of the four complaints that had just been filed against her.
This was before the House committee on justice conducted a series of hearings evaluating the complaints for sufficiency in form, substance and grounds.
Another series of hearings in April heard from witnesses and gathered documentary evidence that made the panel conclude that there was probable cause to impeach the Vice President.
‘Strategy backfired’
Looking back at the hearings, Senior Deputy Majority Leader and Iloilo Rep. Lorenz Defensor admitted that Duterte’s announcement on Feb. 18 that she will run for president in 2028 made things more challenging for the committee members.
The announcement was initially seen as her way of pushing back or paving the way for her to defense against the allegations, Defensor said.
But it later “backfired” when she snubbed all of the hearings and left the allegations unchallenged by her own counterevidence, he added.
“When the Vice President declared that she’s running for president in 2028, that was a big challenge for the committee on justice,” Defensor told ABS-CBN News Channel. “She’s popular and has many supporters.”
“That strategy of declaring (her political plans) early backfired,” Defensor said. “Instead of sustaining her position that she shouldn’t be impeached, she and her camp failed to appear… and [she] did not respond to the allegations.”
Several parties in the House are now seen backing the complaints, including most members of the NUP and Lakas-CMD. The Partido Federal ng Pilipinas and Liberal Party are letting their members vote independently.
Country has seen ‘evidence’
For Lakas-CMD, about 95 percent of its more than 60 members are expected to vote in favor of sending the complaints to a Senate trial, said the party spokesperson, Lanao del Sur Rep. Zia Alonto Adiong.
“We expect that Lakas will come out strong in terms of its vote,” he told reporters. “We are… supporting the impeachment complaint because the whole country has seen the evidence, the testimonies of witnesses.”
Lakas-CMD, the party of former Speaker Martin Romualdez, led last year’s impeachment drive against Duterte. Its members in the House has since shrunk from a peak of 110 during the 19th Congress to just around 70, according to Adiong.
