Progressive group assails Senate vote

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CEBU CITY — Progressive alliance Bagong Alyansang Makabayan (Bayan) Central Visayas on Wednesday, June 11, denounced the Senate's decision to send the impeachment articles against Vice President Sara Duterte back to the House of Representatives.

Bayan Central Visayas chairman Jaime Paglinawan on Monday (June 9) described the move as a "shameless attempt to shield the vice president from accountability and a betrayal of the people."

Paglinawan said the move "shamelessly shields Sara Duterte from impeachment" and accused the 18 senators, who voted in favor of the remand of "rejecting their constitutional duty."

"For four months, the Senate leadership, led by Senate President Chiz Escudero, has delayed the impeachment process after receiving the Article of Impeachment forwarded by the Lower House," he said.

Paglinawan also took a swipe at Escudero's leadership, saying it played a direct role in delaying justice.

"Escudero has employed various tactics to avoid convening the Senate as an impeachment court," he added.

The group said the Senate, by rejecting its constitutional duty to hear and decide on the charges outlined in the impeachment complaint against Duterte, has effectively dismissed the case.

The group said this move kept the public from knowing how confidential funds were allegedly misused during Duterte's time as Department of Education (DepEd) secretary and vice president.

Paglinawan added that Duterte was being shielded despite serious concerns about her use of confidential funds in both offices.

He stressed that these were public funds allegedly misused without transparency and criticized the Senate for choosing to shield Duterte instead of seeking the truth.

The progressive group added that the responsibility now lies in the hands of the people.

"We must continue to fight for truth and accountability, and demand answers for the misuse of public funds," Paglinawan said.

The group is mobilizing for protests on June 12, Independence Day, calling on the public to "take the impeachment complaint to the streets."

What the Senate did

On June 10, 2025, the Senate, sitting as an impeachment court, voted 18–5 to return the seven articles of impeachment against Vice President Sara Duterte to the House of Representatives.

Escudero insisted the move did not mean dismissal, noting that the Senate simultaneously issued a writ of summons to Duterte.

"She now has 10 calendar days to answer the charges from the time the summons is served," Escudero said, explaining that procedural and constitutional questions prompted the Senate to remand the complaint.

Escudero emphasized that "remanding is not equivalent to dismissing," and said it will be up to the next (20th) Congress to decide whether to proceed with the trial or reintroduce the complaint if unresolved by June 30.

Five senators voted against the return, arguing that the impeachment court should have begun hearing the case immediately.