MANILA — Two impeachment complaints targeting Vice President Sara Duterte have been formally accepted by the House Committee on Justice, officials confirmed Monday (02 Mar 2026).
This comes after one complaint was dismissed and another withdrawn, streamlining the proceedings.
The complaints submitted by Fr. Jose Saballa and colleagues, and by lawyer Nathaniel Cabrera, were deemed sufficient in form under House rules.
Committee chair Batangas Rep. Gerville Luistro said, “The Saballa et al. complaint is sufficient in form,” after the motion by vice chair San Juan City Rep. Ysabel Maria Zamora was seconded and approved without objection. The complaint had backing from Mamamayang Liberal Party-list Rep. Leila de Lima.
The committee also approved the Cabrera complaint, endorsed by Deputy Speaker Francisco Paolo Ortega V and Manila Rep. Bienvenido Abante Jr. Luistro confirmed, “The Cabrera complaint is sufficient in form,” following a seconded, unopposed motion.
With these rulings, the complaints now move to the phase of evaluating whether the allegations, if proven, constitute impeachable offenses under the Constitution.
Earlier in the session, the committee voted to dismiss the Feb. 2, 2026 complaint by former lawmakers and activist groups, citing the one-year bar in the Constitution. The Supreme Court’s July 25, 2025 ruling clarified that proceedings could not commence before Feb. 6, 2026.
The panel also accepted the withdrawal of a complaint from Tindig Pilipinas co-convener Francis Joseph “Kiko” Aquino Dee, who indicated support for the Saballa complaint instead.
The charges cited in the complaints against the Vice President include betrayal of public trust, culpable violation of the Constitution, graft and corruption, bribery, and other serious offenses under Article XI, Section 2 of the 1987 Constitution.
