Justice delayed? Acidre warns VP Duterte impeachment may vanish in procedure

National

BEFORE Vice President Sara Duterte can answer to allegations in court, her impeachment case may first have to survive a gauntlet of red tape that, one lawmaker warns, could bury it for good.

Tingog Party-list Representative Jude Acidre expressed concern that the impeachment case against the Vice President is at risk of being derailed by legal technicalities, instead of moving toward a Senate trial. He emphasized that accountability must be addressed through formal proceedings, not prolonged procedural delays.

“Sana hindi malunod sa technicality ang ating kagustuhang mabigyan linaw ang pananagutan sa Pangalawang Pangulo. Kasi ang isa lang naman ang pamamaraan para matugunan natin ang panawagan for accountability, magkaroon ng trial,” Acidre said during a press conference on Wednesday, July 2.

Acidre raised the issue amid questions over whether the impeachment case, initiated in the 19th Congress and transmitted to the Senate on February 5, can legally carry over to the 20th Congress. The Senate has since convened as an impeachment court but opted to return the articles of impeachment to the House, citing procedural gaps—including the lack of a certification that the lower chamber intends to pursue the complaint under the new Congress.

He argued that such concerns would have been better addressed during a proper trial, where both sides could present arguments and evidence. According to him, constitutional mandates should not be stalled by debates over process.

The impeachment complaint centers on allegations of misuse of confidential funds and reported threats by Duterte against senior government officials. Acidre said delays in the process deny the public the clarity they deserve. He stressed that citizens are the real casualties in the drawn-out discussions, noting that they should have already seen progress toward answering serious questions raised in the articles of impeachment.

For Acidre, the longer the process is caught in limbo, the farther the public gets from the truth.