Sara Duterte faces fourth impeachment complaint
A fourth impeachment complaint has been filed against Vice President Sara Duterte, hours after she declared her intention to run for president in 2028.
Lawyer Nathaniel Cabrea filed the new complaint before the Office of the House Secretary General on Feb. 18. It was endorsed by House Deputy Speaker Paolo Ortega and Manila 6th District Rep. Bienvenido Abante.
The filing cited culpable violation of the Constitution, betrayal of public trust, graft and corruption, and other high crimes as grounds of impeachment.
“The combination of admitted intent to employ lethal violence against constitutional officers, the misuse of security apparatus, and the diversion of public funds creates a real and present risk to the orderly functioning of government and to the safety of public officials. This Honorable House of Representatives must act to avert further institutional harm," it read, as per GMA News.
In response to this, Duterte's defense team said, as per a Philippine STAR report, that the "successive filing of complaints does not, by mere repetition, transform allegations into truth."
Three other impeachment complaints were lodged against Duterte in February, as endorsed by the Makabayan Bloc, ML Party-list Rep. Leila de Lima, and Akbayan Rep. Perci Cendaña.
The fresh complaints came after the Supreme Court declared the articles of impeachment against the VP as unconstitutional last year. It affirmed its decision last Jan. 29.
In its July 2025 ruling, the SC voided an impeachment complaint against Duterte for the reason that it was transmitted to the Senate without a plenary vote. They also said that the fourth impeachment complaint is barred by the one-year rule in the Constitution because there were three complaints that came ahead of it.
The high court, at the time, noted it was not absolving the VP of the charges.
Duterte is accused of misusing public funds, amassing unusual wealth, and threatening to kill President Ferdinand "Bongbong" Marcos Jr., the First Lady, and the House Speaker.
