VICE President Sara Duterte's camp said the impeachment complaint against her should be dismissed for being "fundamentally flawed," while the prosecution maintained that her answer did not engage with the articles, concentrating instead on procedural, jurisdictional and constitutional objections.
The Senate, constituted as an impeachment court, on May 18 gave Duterte 10 calendar days to respond to the charges against her. Her reply on May 25 was uploaded to the Senate’s impeachment website this week.
In her reply, Duterte said that the entire impeachment process in the House of Representatives Committee on Justice was "tainted by evident bad faith."
The defense also said that the House usurped the Senate's power by conducting a "mini trial" or a "fishing expedition" to build a case, rather than just initiating it.
It also said the articles violated the doctrinal ruling in Duterte vs. House of Representatives, which required that the basis of any charge must be for any impeachable acts or omissions committed in relation to their office and during the current term of the impeachable officer.
Her camp also said that the articles of impeachment and the evidence transmitted by the House of Representatives are the product of a proceeding that "bears all the hallmarks of grave abuse of discretion at its very foundation.”
"The televised coverage of the committee hearings made it clear that the birth of the articles of impeachment was a foregone conclusion, and the hearings were staged performances and a trawling search for justification for a pre-ordained result," the defense said.
The reply also included answers to the four articles of impeachment filed against the vice president.
On the first article over the misuse of confidential funds, her camp has denied any culpable violation of the Constitution or graft regarding the use of the funds, noting that the findings of the Commission on Audit are not yet final and no evidence exists showing she personally gained from these funds.
The defense also said that the allegations regarding her unexplained wealth, covered in the second article, involved her time as mayor and vice mayor of Davao City, which are "non-impeachable offenses.”
They also said that the inclusion of assets belonging to her spouse, lawyer Manases Carpio, was a "malicious attempt to manufacture unexplained wealth" and that the data used violated bank secrecy laws.
The defense also denied giving monetary gifts to Department of Education officials to circumvent procurement laws, as outlined in the third article of bribery, saying that the prosecution misrepresented witness testimony to "lend color" to the accusation.
It also said that Duterte's statement that she hired an assassin to kill President Ferdinand Marcos Jr., first lady Liza Marcos, and former speaker Martin Romualdez was part of her freedom of speech in opposition to the administration's policies and should not constitute a crime.
The defense also included a motion to exclude evidence, noting that much of the evidence attached to the articles was obtained through "constitutionally impermissible means" during the Justice Committee's "fishing expedition" and should therefore be excluded as "fruit of the poisonous tree."
Her camp concluded that the articles of impeachment failed to meet the constitutional requirements for an impeachment proceeding and lacked sufficient factual or legal bases, thus praying for dismissal.
The prosecution, in their manifestation, said that while Duterte repeatedly asserted that she committed no impeachable offense, her answer offered no coherent factual narrative that directly refuted the charges set forth in the articles of impeachment.
It also said that the answer did not function as a genuine response to the charges, but as an attempt to secure the case's dismissal on constitutional and procedural grounds.
Also over the weekend, Sen. Panfilo Lacson dismissed claims that the forthcoming impeachment trial would derail the Senate's ongoing investigation into alleged irregularities in government flood control projects, saying such assertions are politically motivated and driven by early campaigning for the 2028 national elections.
Speaking in an interview with IBC News on Friday, Lacson said members of the Senate majority bloc have chosen not to respond to suggestions that the impeachment proceedings would interfere with the chamber's oversight functions.
"We'll just leave them to their campaigning. Everyone knows the impeachment trial will not derail the flood control probe. Such tales are not surprising because we have colleagues in the Senate who are running in 2028, thus their heavy use of Facebook Live and other social media platforms, and media interviews," Lacson said.
"We understand their plight and their need to go into early campaign mode. So, our position in the majority is not to dignify their claims with a response," he added.
Lacson's remarks came after Senate Minority Leader Alan Peter Cayetano said the impeachment trial should not halt the Senate's flood control investigation.
The Senate Blue Ribbon Committee, now chaired by Sen. Erwin Tulfo, is leading the inquiry into alleged anomalies in flood control projects across the country.
The committee is expected to continue the work initiated under Lacson's leadership, with lawmakers scrutinizing government agencies, contractors and the implementation of flood control programs amid recurring flooding that has affected several communities nationwide.
The impeachment proceedings against Duterte are expected to become one of the Senate's most significant constitutional responsibilities in the coming months.
Under the Constitution, senators will sit as judges to hear the case after the articles of impeachment are transmitted to the Senate.
Despite concerns that the trial could consume much of the chamber's legislative calendar, several senators have expressed confidence that committee hearings and legislative inquiries can proceed alongside the impeachment process through careful scheduling and coordination.
The Senate Impeachment Court has set the schedule for Duterte's impeachment trial, starting on July 6 at 2 p.m. every Monday, Tuesday, and Wednesday until President Marcos' fifth State of the Nation Address (SONA) on July 27. Thursdays will be reserved for hearing motions and procedural matters, with no sessions on Fridays.
After the SONA, proceedings will continue on Tuesdays, Wednesdays, and Thursdays at 2 p.m., while Mondays may be used for Senate committee hearings.
Senate Secretary Renato Bantug Jr. emphasized the importance of balancing legislative duties and the impeachment trial.
