President Marcos Denies Involvement in Impeachment of Vice President Duterte

President Ferdinand “Bongbong” Marcos Jr. on Thursday denied any involvement in the impeachment proceedings against Vice President Sara Duterte, emphasizing that the Executive branch has no role in the process.

"The Executive cannot have a hand in the impeachment. Walang role ang Executive sa impeachment," Marcos stated during a press conference.

However, he confirmed that he had discussed the matter with lawmakers, including Speaker Ferdinand Martin Romualdez. "Did we discuss it with the Speaker, did we discuss it with the other congressman, of course... ang tinatanong anong plano ninyo, ano bang gusto niyong gawin? Nandito na ito eh, hindi na namin maiwasan," Marcos said.

Marcos also addressed the issue of his son, Ilocos Norte Representative Ferdinand Alexander “Sandro” Marcos, being the first signatory in Duterte's impeachment. He revealed that his son sought his advice on the matter and was told to support the process. "So, sabi ko, 'nandiyan na tayo,' sabi ko kay Cong. Sandro, sabi ko sa kanya, [I said to him, here we are.] 'The process has already begun. So, it’s your duty now to support that process. So, do your duty.' That’s what I told him, 'Do your duty. You have to support the process. You are constitutionally mandated to carry out that process. And you’re a congressman, so do your duty.' That’s what I told him. I didn’t know he’ll be the first to sign though," he shared.

Despite his reservations about the impeachment, Marcos stated that he does not consider the lawmakers’ actions to be an act of defiance. "No. I am sure that the parties that filed the impeachment cases felt strongly about it. And despite my importunings and expressing my opinion that we really – we’d rather not have the impeachment, they continued to do that," Marcos explained.

He continued, "So, it’s not defiance. Ganyan ang kanilang paniniwala. Sa kanilang paniniwala, kailangan na kailangang gawin ito. Kahit na sinabi ko na, 'Sana huwag na'. 'Hindi, hindi puwede, hindi naming puwedeng palampasin ito.' Ganoon ang thinking nila. So, tinuloy nila."

Marcos also mentioned that he is open to calling a special session to address the impeachment but noted that no formal request has yet been made by the Senate.

On Wednesday, the House of Representatives impeached Duterte, with 215 lawmakers endorsing the verified complaint against her, which was transmitted to the Senate for trial. However, the Senate did not address the transmittal on the last session day, as Congress went into recess for the 2025 election campaign period.

Senate President Francis “Chiz” Escudero confirmed earlier that the impeachment trial would not commence until the Senate resumes its session in June. Senate Secretary Renato Bantug Jr. explained that "complete staff work" was needed to review the articles before the Senate could proceed.

Duterte has yet to comment on the impeachment but had previously welcomed the filing of the complaints. Davao City Representative Paolo Duterte, her brother, denounced the impeachment effort as a politically motivated attack against his sister.

The impeachment complaint includes seven articles, accusing Duterte of serious offenses, including conspiracy to assassinate top government officials, misappropriation of funds, bribery, unexplained wealth, involvement in extrajudicial killings, destabilization efforts, and misconduct in her role as Vice President.