Take 2 on VP: Will House ‘fast-track’ raps anew?
The impeachment complaints against Vice President Sara Duterte, which were transmitted to the Office of the Speaker on Friday, may be acted upon in plenary by the House of Representatives as early as next week—or be sent directly to the Senate if enough lawmakers endorse it.
This was according to House justice committee member and Bicol Saro Rep. Terry Ridon, who said nothing would stop lawmakers who want to impeach Duterte from opting for a fast-track mode through a filing by one-third of all House members.
“Now that the impeachment complaints against Vice President Sara Duterte have been transmitted to the Office of the Speaker, we can expect these to be included in the Order of Business of the House plenary for action as early as Feb. 9, 2026,” Ridon said.
“This, however, does not preclude one-third of all House members from endorsing articles of impeachment against the Vice President for direct transmittal to the Senate, so long as no plenary referral has yet been made to the House committee on justice” he added.
A referral to the committee led by Batangas Rep. Gerville Luistro would trigger another one-year bar on impeachment proceedings against Duterte.
House Secretary General Cheloy Garafil transmitted the two complaints, filed by Bagong Alyansang Makabayan (Bayan) and a coalition of civil society groups, to Speaker Faustino Dy III’s office on Feb. 6, when the one-year bar was lifted.
Duterte, accused of misusing P612.5 million in confidential funds from her concurrent tenure as vice president and education secretary from 2022 to 2024, previously faced four complaints: three in December 2024 and filed by civil society groups, and the complaint directly endorsed by 215 lawmakers last Feb. 5, 2025, and sent to the Senate for trial.
On July 25, 2025, however, the Supreme Court ruled that by not acting on the first three complaints within “10 session days,” they were considered lapsed and triggered the one-year bar against the February complaint.
Impeachment modes
Rule II of the House’s Rules of Procedure in Impeachment Proceedings states that an impeachment complaint can be filed through three modes: by any House member, by any citizen with the endorsement by any member, or by at least one-third of all members.
Bayan has dared lawmakers to use the fast-track mode again, as it did in February last year, saying that nothing in the Supreme Court decision prevents it. Should the House opt for this route, it would be a direct test of the high court resolution.
In that resolution, the Court changed how it counted session days—traditionally counted by the House from the moment it begins to the moment it adjourns, even if it happens across multiple days—into calendar days. The high tribunal also made a “suggestion” that even after securing the one-third vote, the articles of impeachment must still be referred to the justice committee.
Ridon, however, told the Inquirer that this was merely a suggestion by the high court, and that as long as the House does not invoke the second mode anew, it does not yet have to amend its current House rules on impeachment to align it closer to the Supreme Court resolution.
He further noted that the resolution introduced at least two new due process guidelines for the second mode of impeachment: for the copies of the draft articles and evidence to be given to the endorsing one-third House members, and for the same to be given to all members during plenary deliberations of the articles of impeachment.
Fastest way
Senate President Vicente “Tito” Sotto III said the chamber, where Duterte will stand trial should she be impeached by the House, should wrap up the proceedings as soon as possible.
“It should not be delayed, it needs [to be done] as soon as possible, the fastest way possible,” Sotto said in Filipino at an online briefing held on Friday. “[It will be] unfair to the public and unfair to the person being charged.”
Sotto said he would suggest that the impeachment court convene at 3 p.m. onwards, from Monday to Friday. He added that it would be hard to determine how long the proceedings will last since it “depends on the presentation of the prosecution and the defense.”
The senator said he was briefed by three justices—two from the Court of Appeals and another from the Court of Tax Appeals—“because I would want to concentrate on how to be the presiding officer of an impeachment court when it comes to rules of evidence and rules on criminal procedures.”
“I am being briefed by some justices friends because I would want to concentrate on how to be the presiding officer of an impeachment court when it comes to rules of evidence and rules on criminal procedures,” Sotto said.
Ouster moves
Meanwhile, former Senate President Franklin Drilon said an impeachment trial against Duterte would be impossible if Sotto were ousted.
Last Wednesday, Sotto and his allies thwarted attempts to oust him, a move that Drilon has linked to the impeachment bid against Duterte and the 2028 presidential elections.
“If Tito Sotto is replaced as Senate President and the new Senate President comes from the minority, the Senate trial will not push through,” Drilon said in an interview over dzMM. “Based on what we’ve seen in the past few months, the impeachment proceedings in the Senate did not continue. That, in my view, is what will happen if Senator Sotto is replaced by somebody from the camp of Duterte which is in the minority.”
He also predicted that efforts to unseat Sotto would further intensify as the elections draw near.
“What do the Duterte senators want? What decision would favor their candidate in 2028? Similarly, on the other side, Sotto and his allies will base their decision on what they perceive as needed for 2028,” he said.
Many minority senators are identified with either the Vice President or her father, former President Rodrigo Duterte, including Senators Ronald “Bato” Dela Rosa, Robin Padilla, Imee Marcos, Christopher “Bong” Go and Rodante Marcoleta.
Padilla, for instance, has openly declared that he would oppose the impeachment trial of Duterte, warning it could trigger a change in the Senate leadership. —WITH A REPORT FROM MAILA AGER
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