HOUSE Committee on Justice Chairperson Gerville “Jinky Bitrics” Luistro of Batangas on Tuesday said the House of Representatives will apply the same constitutional standards in evaluating impeachment complaints against Vice President Sara Z. Duterte as it did in tackling the impeachment cases against President Ferdinand R. Marcos Jr.
Luistro, who chairs the House Committee on Justice, made the statement after the plenary adopted the committee’s findings and recommendations dismissing two impeachment complaints against the President for insufficiency in substance.
“The people of the Philippines are assured na kung anong naging parameter, anong naging deliberation, anong naging approach ng Justice Committee in handling the impeachment complaints against the President will be adopted for the purpose of evaluating and determining as well the sufficiency in form and substance with respect to the impeachment complaints against the Vice President,” Luistro made the statement Tuesday in an interview with reporters following the plenary’s affirmation of the House Committee on Justice report dismissing the impeachment complaints against President Marcos for lack of substance.
She stressed, however, that the Justice Committee currently has no jurisdiction over the impeachment complaints filed against the Vice President, as none has yet been referred to the panel by the plenary.
“Kaya lang right now wala pa sa Justice Committee. That’s why we haven’t seen yet these impeachment complaints. I heard tatlo na, but we haven’t seen any of those,” Luistro said.
Luistro said impeachment complaints must first be referred by the plenary before the Justice Committee can act.
“Kailangan pong ma-refer muna ng plenary sa Justice Committee itong mga impeachment complaints na ito, either 1, 2 or 3 of them para magkaroon po ng jurisdiction ang Justice Committee to act on this,” she explained.
She added that the number of impeachment complaints that may be taken up is a matter solely for the plenary to decide.
Luistro also explained why the impeachment complaints against the Vice President were not taken up last Monday, saying they were still with the Office of the Speaker.
She said the Office of the Speaker has 10 session days to include impeachment complaints in the Order of Business, after which the plenary has three session days to refer them to the Justice Committee.
“Hangga’t di yan nari-refer sa justice committee, wala pang jurisdiction ang justice committee over those impeachment complaints against the Vice President,” Luistro said.
Luistro warned that failure to act within the prescribed period could trigger the operation of a Supreme Court (SC) ruling on impeachment timing.
“Dapat ma-include ni Speaker in the order of business ’yung mga impeachment complaints na ’yun not later than March 2 of 2026 otherwise mago-operate iyong resolution ng [SC],” she said.
So far, three impeachment complaints have been filed against Vice President Duterte, all of which remain pending action by the plenary.
The first two complaints, filed separately by members of the Makabayan bloc and by a coalition of civil society groups and lawyers, accuse the Vice President of betrayal of public trust and culpable violation of the Constitution in connection with the alleged misuse and mishandling of confidential funds during her tenure as Vice President and as Education secretary.
A third impeachment complaint, filed by another group of lawyers and religious leaders, raises similar accusations, including alleged violations of transparency and accountability requirements and conduct unbecoming of a high public officer, likewise centered on the use of confidential funds and related actions while in office.
Luistro said the timing of the filing of impeachment complaints could itself become a central issue once deliberations begin, citing differing SC pronouncements on the one-year ban rule.
“Now we have to decide first when are we really allowed to file the second impeachment. Is it the February 6 as expressed in the original decision of July 25, 2025 or is it January 15, 2026 as implied in the resolution of January 28, 2026?” Luistro said.
She said the issue would be addressed squarely and within constitutional bounds once the Justice Committee acquires jurisdiction.
“Yeah, I am actually anticipating a very passionate debate on that when we start on the deliberation before the Justice Committee,” Luistro said.
The House earlier adopted the Justice Committee report dismissing the impeachment complaints against President Marcos after finding that the allegations failed to establish the ultimate facts required by the Constitution to proceed to trial.
The post Chairperson Luistro: VP impeach complaints to face same strict test applied to PBBM cases appeared first on Journal News Online.
