Vice President Sara Duterte’s 32.2 million votes in the 2022 elections do not shield her from accountability over the allegations raised in her impeachment case, House prosecution panel adviser and spokesperson Robert Ace Barbers said.
Barbers made the statement in response to one of the arguments raised by Duterte’s lead defense counsel, Atty. Sheila Sison, who said removing the Vice President through impeachment would render the votes of her 32.2 million supporters “useless” and disenfranchise the electorate.
“Does that mean because you’re the most powerful person in the government and because you were able to get X amount of votes, does that give you a license to commit all these violations? Sa aking palagay, medyo hindi iyon ang intensyon ng gumawa ng ating Saligang Batas,” Barbers said.
Barbers said an electoral mandate does not give any public official permission to misuse government funds, accumulate unexplained wealth, commit bribery, or issue threats against other officials.
He stressed that impeachment was written into the Constitution precisely to ensure that even the country’s highest officials remain answerable to the people.
“Kaya nga nilagay ito sa ating Constitution ay para proteksyunan ang interes ng ating mamamayang Pilipino laban sa mga posibleng pag-abuso o paglabag ng ating matataas na opisyal sa gobyerno,” he said.
Barbers said impeachment is a constitutional accountability mechanism designed specifically for the country’s highest-ranking officials.
Under Article XI, Section 2 of the 1987 Constitution, the President, Vice President, members of the Supreme Court, members of the Constitutional Commissions, and the Ombudsman may be removed from office only through impeachment.
“These officials can only be removed through an impeachment process initiated by the House of Representatives and decided by the Senate,” Barbers said.
He said the process ensures that no public official, regardless of popularity or electoral support, is beyond accountability.
“At ito ay pareho para sa lahat ng impeachable officers. Kaya nga mayroon nito sa ating Constitution dahil paano natin mapapanagot ang mga makapangyarihan sa ating gobyerno kung wala nito?” he said.
Duterte was elected vice president in 2022 with 32.2 million votes, the highest ever received by a candidate in a Philippine election.
President Ferdinand Marcos Jr. won the presidency in the same election with 31.6 million votes, amid a turnout of about 56 million voters, the highest since 1998.
Despite Duterte’s strong electoral mandate, Barbers said public officials remain subject to constitutional accountability when accused of impeachable offenses.
“The Constitution does not exempt anyone from accountability simply because they received millions of votes,” he said. “If there are allegations of violations of the Constitution or other laws, the impeachment process exists to determine whether those charges have merit,” he added.
The Senate on Monday began hearing the four Articles of Impeachment against Duterte. The charges involve alleged misuse of confidential funds, unexplained wealth, bribery involving officials of the Department of Education, and grave threats against Marcos, First Lady Liza Araneta-Marcos, and former House Speaker Martin Romualdez.
Duterte has repeatedly denied the allegations.