01/06/2026
JUST INβΌοΈ
EXECUTIVE SUMMARY of the Answer filed by Vice President Sara Z. Duterte respectfully submits that the Articles of Impeachment are constitutionally infirm, procedurally defective, and substantively deficient.
I. The House Committee on Justice (COJ) conducted a "trial" but trial can be done only by the Senate.
II. There are clear indications and declarations that the COJ had predetermined the impeachment of the Vice President even before purported additional evidence were received, completed, and assessed.
lll. In answering the impeachment complaint against her, due process demands that the respondent is confronted with ALL the accusations and supposed evidence against her. In the "trial" conducted by the COJ, new pieces of evidence not included in the impeachment complaints were introduced which the Vice President was not given the opportunity to confront and answer. This is not allowed and goes against rules of fair play.
IV. Under controlling case law, an impeachable officer is answerable only for alleged acts or omissions while holding the impeachable office. In this case, accusations against her include acts even before she became Vice President.
V. On the matter of the Vice President's confidential funds, there is no showing that she misused or absconded the same.
VI. On the SALN of the Vice President, under the law, it must be shown that her assets were illegally acquired and/or that she willfully concealed her assets. The Articles of Impeachment failed to show ill-gotten or hidden wealth.
VII. With respect to allegations of political destabilization, sedition, or purported threats against government officials, the Defense asserts that the charges are founded upon statements taken out of context, statements not made by the Vice President herself, or interpretations unsupported by competent and admissible evidence. Constitutional accountability cannot rest upon conjecture, innuendo, or strained interpretations of political statements.
VIII. There is a standard under the Constitution to establish culpable violation of the Constitution, bribery, graft and corruption, high crimes, or betrayal of public trust for an impeachable officer to be convicted of any thereof. The allegations against the Vice President fall short of the threshold.
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