Statement of Malacañang on Marcos Jr., Duterte Impeachment Complaint Comparisons
Malacañang reacted to the comparisons between the failed impeachment complaint versus President Bongbong Marcos and the looming trial against Vice Pres. Sara Duterte.
In May, the chairperson of the Duterte Youth Party-list and his wife attempted to file an impeachment complaint against Pres. Bongbong Marcos. However, it was not received by the House Secretary General’s Office due to the absence of the Secretary General.
Then, Malacañang claimed that the impeachment complaint against Marcos Jr. is allegedly “baseless”. Prior to an impeachment complaint attempted to be filed against the Chief Executive, four (4) impeachment complaints were filed against Vice Pres. Sara Duterte.
Last February 5, Duterte was impeached by the House of Representatives after more than two-thirds of the lawmakers in the lower chamber approved her ouster. Prior to it, the House held investigations on the spending of the Confidential Funds of the Office of the Vice President (OVP) and the Department of Education (DepEd).
The House transmitted the documents on the impeachment of Duterte last February but it was only recently when the Senate President and the senators took their oath as the presiding officer and the senator judges of the impeachment court. Malacañang has repeatedly stressed that Pres. Bongbong Marcos will not intervene in the impeachment trial of Vice Pres. Sara Duterte.
Recently, at a press briefing, Malacañang press officer Atty. Claire Castro was asked if Pres. Bongbong Marcos would go through the same impeachment proceedings as Vice Pres. Sara Duterte if he ever faces an impeachment trial. The Palace official slammed the comparisons.
“That is in the hands of the House of Representatives, and we should not compare the situation of the Vice President to that of the President—first of all, it seems that our President did not spend 125 million pesos in just 11 days,” Castro said based on a report on Inquirer.
Furthermore, the Malacañang Press Officer added that Pres. Bongbong Marcos is doing his work properly “and is accounting in accordance with the law”. According to Atty. Claire Castro, the Office of the President was never sent a Notice of Disallowance related to the Confidential Funds. Based on the report, she also claimed that there were no reported questionable disbursements of the fund.
Previously, presidential cousin and House Speaker Martin Romualdez was asked of his reaction to the impeachment complaint against Pres. Bongbong Marcos. On the impeachment case against Vice Pres. Sara Duterte, it was sent back to the House of Representatives after 18 senator judges voted for its return and only five (5) senator judges opposed to it.
Vice Pres. Sara Duterte previously claimed that she has accepted the outcome of her impeachment trial whatever it will be. Recently, Malacañang clarified that Marcos Jr. is not open for a dialogue over the impeachment proceedings against Duterte.