House panel finds probable cause to impeach VP Sara Duterte

MANILA, Philippines - A House of Representatives committee unanimously found probable cause Wednesday to impeach Vice President Sara Duterte on allegations including unexplained wealth, misuse of confidential and state funds, and threats to assassinate President Ferdinand Marcos Jr., his wife, and the House speaker.

The 53-member Justice Committee endorsed two impeachment complaints after four days of hearings, marking a key advancement in the process. The complaints, led by Representative Leila de Lima and others, cite Duterte's alleged mishandling of 612.5 million pesos in confidential funds from her office and during her tenure as education secretary, as well as discrepancies between her asset declarations and bank transactions totaling billions of pesos flagged by the Anti-Money Laundering Council.

The panel also examined a 2024 online news conference in which Duterte stated she had arranged for Marcos, First Lady Liza Araneta-Marcos, and former House Speaker Martin Romualdez to be killed if she were assassinated herself. The National Bureau of Investigation described the remarks as a threat to national security. Witnesses included a detainee who claimed to have distributed...