Vice President Sara Duterte’s impeachment has been the most talked-about news in the Philippines for the past weeks. The focus of the media and our countrymen have immediately shifted to this issue and away from the controversial Bamban Mayor Alice Guo and the alleged blank items in the General Appropriation Bill that shall govern the 2025 National Budget.
To recapitulate, as of February 7, 2025, 240 members of the House of Representatives signed the impeachment complaint against VP Sara. The grounds for impeachment as indicated in the complaint are as follows: (1) Conspiracy to assassinate President Ferdinand Marcos Jr., First Lady Liza Marcos and Speaker Martin Romualdez; (2) Malversation of P612 Million in confidential funds; (3) Bribery and corruption in the Department of Education; (4) Unexplained wealth and failure to disclose assets in the Vice President’s Statement of Assets, Liabilities and Net Worth where her wealth increased by four times from 2007 to 2017; (5) Involvement in extrajudicial killings in Davao City; and (6) Destabilization, insurrection, and public disorder efforts such as being absent during the State of the Nation Address (SONA) of President Bongbong Marcos and proclaiming herself as the designated survivor.
As mandated by the 1987 Constitution, if the House, by one-third (1/3) vote of all its members, approves the Articles of Impeachment, the case is then sent to the Senate, which conducts the impeachment trial. One third (1/3) of the present composition of House of Representatives is 102 members thereof; the complaint against VP Sara garnered more than the required number of votes/signatures.
Though VP Sara was the first as Vice President, she, however, was not the first public official to be impeached by the House of Representatives. In the past, a handful of our public officials had faced the same fate as that of the Vice President and that will be our topic in this week’s column.
The first public official to face an impeachment complaint was Former President Elipidio Quirino for several questionable expenditures. Complaints were also filed against his successors – Former President Diosdado Macapagal for illegal importation of rice; President Ferdinand Marcos for graft and unexplained wealth; and President Corazon Aquino for supposed violation of the Constitution. All of said complaints, however, were ultimately dismissed. During the time of then President Gloria Arroyo, the filing of an impeachment complaint against her had become an annual ritual but none of the said complaints were able to attain enough support from the lower chamber of Congress. Former President Noynoy Aquino was also subjected to an impeachment complaint for Disbursement Acceleration Fund but the same was also rejected. The last administration was also not safe from these complaints. Both President Rodrigo Duterte and Vice President Leni Robredo were assailed by several impeachment complaints none of which prospered.
In our history, only one president had been “impeached,” meaning the complaint filed against him garnered the enough votes needed from the House of Representatives and the Articles of Impeached was referred to the House of Senate for the conduct of impeachment trial. On November 13, 2000, then Representative Manny Villar declared that the verified complaint for impeachment against Former President Estrada prospered and the Articles of Impeachment shall be endorsed to the Senate. It was the first time that our country witnessed a full blown impeachment trial. The esteemed senators took the role of the judge and then Chief Justice Hilario Davide served as the presiding officer. The Constitution states that the Chief Justice of the Supreme Court shall preside in the impeachment trial of the chief executive. Such trial, however, was cut short as the prosecution stormed out the Senate when the senator-judges voted against the opening of the second envelope allegedly containing incriminating evidence against Pres. Estrada. This walkout was said to be the starting point that triggers the series of events which ultimately led to what we now considered as People Power 2.
Aside from President Erap, other public officials who got impeached were then Ombudsman Merceditas Gutierrez, Comelec Chairman Andres Bautista, and Chief Justice Renato Corona. Both Gutierrez and Bautista resigned from their posts before their impeachment trial commenced. It was only CJ Corona who underwent a full and complete impeachment proceeding.
On December 13, 2011, the Articles of Impeachment against CJ Corona was received by the House of Senate. The said Articles of Impeachment hinged mainly on Corona’s supposed partiality in cases involving former President Gloria Arroyo and his failure to disclose his SALN or Statement of Assets, Liabilities and Network. The impeachment trial of the Chief Magistrate lasted for five (5) months. On May 29, 2012, with a vote of 20-3, with 20 senator-judges voting against the chief magistrate, Chief Justice Renato Corona was the first and only public official to be removed from office thru impeachment.