Impeachment Trial of Vice President Sara Duterte: A Politically Volatile Event

The Philippine Senate has commenced the impeachment trial of Vice President Sara Duterte in a highly charged and politically volatile event that will unfold against the backdrop of her bitter feud with President Ferdinand Marcos Jr.

Over 6,000 police officers, including anti-riot squads, were deployed to secure the Senate, where approximately 400 anti-Duterte demonstrators converged, chanting ‘Convict Sara now.’

Vice President Duterte did not appear in court but was represented by her lawyers at the start of the trial, which will run for 92 days, according to a pretrial plan seen by The Associated Press.

If convicted of the charges, which include amassing unexplained wealth and publicly threatening to have Marcos assassinated, Vice President Duterte may be permanently disqualified from holding public office.

Rep. Gerville Luistro, who leads the prosecution team, stated that there was adequate evidence and witness accounts to convict the vice president.

‘This is the moment when the republic must demonstrate that laws are applied equally to the powerful and the powerless alike,’ Luistro said.

Sheila Sison, head of the vice president’s legal defense, expressed doubt whether prosecutors have legitimate evidence to back up their allegations against Duterte, who rose to power with a landslide electoral victory.

‘This court, and we as a people, must guarantee that all efforts to hold our leaders accountable must be done right,’ Sison said. ‘Impeachment should never be abused.’

A conviction would be a lethal blow to the vice president’s announced plan to seek the presidency in mid-2028, when Marcos ends his six-year term.

They were running mates in the 2022 elections in a whirlwind alliance that combined the vote-getting power of two of the country’s most formidable political dynasties, but the union rapidly fell apart.

The vice president is the daughter of former President Rodrigo Duterte, Marcos’ predecessor.

He was arrested last year on orders of the International Criminal Court and flown to The Hague, where he is detained and is scheduled to face trial over alleged crimes against humanity on Nov. 30.

The charges stem from the ex-president’s brutal anti-drugs crackdowns that left thousands of mostly poor suspects dead, alarming Western governments and human rights groups.

Rodrigo Duterte has denied authorizing extrajudicial killings but repeatedly threatened suspects with death while in office.

The vice president has blamed Marcos for her 81-year-old father’s arrest and handover to the ICC.

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Contrasting geopolitical leanings have been a point of contention between Marcos and the Dutertes.

Marcos has expanded defense engagements with the United States, his country’s treaty ally, as his administration stood up to China’s increasingly aggressive actions in the disputed South China Sea.

Rodrigo Duterte had nurtured cozy ties with Chinese President Xi Jinping and Russian leader Vladimir Putin while threatening to sever ties with Washington.

The vice president has come under fire for not condemning China’s assaults, including with the use of powerful water cannons, against Filipino forces and fishermen in the disputed waters.

Last month, the House of Representatives, which is dominated by Marcos’ allies, voted overwhelmingly to impeach the vice president over alleged unexplained wealth, misuse of confidential state funds and a public threat to have the president, his wife and a former House speaker and ally assassinated if she herself were killed due to their political disputes.

Vice President Sara Duterte has generally denied the charges but has refused to publicly answer the allegations in detail ahead of the impeachment trial.

Her supporters have accused Marcos and his key aides of politically persecuting the vice president and her senatorial allies to ensure her impeachment.

Two-thirds of the 24-member Senate, or 16 votes, are needed to convict the vice president.