Last week, President Bongbong Marcos Jr. told allies in Congress not to pursue an impeachment case against Vice President Sara Duterte. There are those who want to file an impeachment because of Duterte's threat to the life of Marcos, First Lady Liza Araneta Marcos and Speaker Martin Romualdez, among other issues with Duterte and her office. He said it was a waste of time and that the vice president was “unimportant”. Congress would simply be tied down and unable to attend to more important issues. Duterte has always maintained there were plans to impeach her. It seems that was the case.
Sixteen people have already filed an impeachment case and have the support of some members of Congress. The complaint needs to be acted upon, but the problem is that Congress will soon adjourn for the holidays. But those pursuing the impeachment said this should not be an obstacle to the continuation of the impeachment. Of the six grounds for impeachment as stipulated in the Constitution, Duterte supposedly violated five of them. Treason was the only thing Duterte did not commit.
As the talk of impeachment was going on, the Philippine Statistics Authority (PSA) released a report that they have no record of anyone born, married, or died with the name Mary Grace Piattos. She is the one who supposedly received the funds from the Office of the Vice President (OVP) based on the receipts issued by the OVP.
Even the name is questionable. Whoever came up with the name is disingenuous with its obvious reference to a well-known restaurant and snack. Someone also received funds from the OVP and DepEd but signed receipts with different signatures. These are just some of the things Congress wanted the OVP and DepEd to explain, but instead of explaining, they went through some antics and squid tactics that everyone already knows.
So now, there is no love lost between the camps of President Marcos and VP Duterte. The troubles have made international news. Duterte is now constantly saying how she regrets being Marcos’ running mate, and that she should have been the president if she wanted to. Should the impeachment case push through, this will polarize the nation. Both have allies in the Senate who act as judges in impeachment cases. The people can do nothing but sit back and watch this political drama unfold.