House leader: No talks yet of Sara Duterte impeachment despite ‘threat’ vs Marcos, others

House lawmakers are not yet discussing the impeachment of Vice President Sara Duterte even after her supposed order to assassinate President Ferdinand “Bongbong” Marcos Jr. in the event that she is killed, Manila Representative Joel Chua said Tuesday. 

“Sa ngayon, wala pa naman po kami napag-uusapan tungkol diyan,” Chua, chairperson of the House Committee on Good Government and Public Accountability, said in a press conference.

“Basta kami po, tinutuloy lamang po namin itong trabaho, kung ano iyong aming maa-unravel sa hearing na ito,” Chua added, referring to their ongoing investigation into the alleged questionable budget use of the Office of the Vice President (OVP) and the Department of Education (DepEd) under Duterte’s leadership.

(We haven’t talked about that as of now. As far as we are concerned, we will just push through with our hearing and see what we can unravel.)

Chua said that it is only when the inquiry is over that the committee can evaluate its next possible action.

“We are a collegial body, and our goal here really is to craft new legislation based on our findings,” he said.

So far in its hearings, the committee has discovered the following:

• the OVP submitted acknowledgement receipts or proof of payment of confidential fund with wrong dates, if not unnamed signatories and suspicious or non-legible names;
• the DepEd under Duterte submitted military certifications justifying confidential fund use apparently without the military’s knowledge;
• Duterte ordered the Special Disbursing Officer (SDO) to disburse the confidential fund to a military officer, contrary to laws;
• Duterte showered her subordinates with money, among others

Speaker Martin Romualdez earlier denied Duterte’s allegation that he is plotting to kill her, saying her claim is just a diversionary tactic in light of the ongoing House investigation. 

Denying that she misused public funds, Duterte has maintained that the House inquiry is just a prelude to an impeachment complain against her. —KBK, GMA Integrated News