MANILA — Manila 6th District Rep. Bienvenido Abante Jr., who endorsed the fourth impeachment complaint against Vice President Sara Z. Duterte, said Saturday he is confident the House of Representatives has the numbers to transmit the complaint to the Senate.

Abante, chair of the House Committee on Human Rights, said he expects to secure the required one-third vote from the 318 House members.

“More than enough, yes,” he said.

Abante outlined the process, saying the Committee on Rules will first forward the complaint to the Committee on Justice for deliberation, which may last two to three days, before it goes to a plenary vote.

“The Committee on Rules will give it to the Committee on Justice. The Committee on Justice would deliberate on that, maybe for two or three days. And after that, it will be put into vote in the plenary,” he said.

The latest complaint was filed by lawyer Nathaniel Cabrera and endorsed by Abante and Deputy Speaker Paolo Ortega V of La Union’s First District. Abante said that once the House votes, the complaint will be transmitted immediately to the Senate.

“It will be transmitted directly to the Senate after the vote in the plenary. That is what could really happen,” he said.

Abante said the process will follow House rules and be guided by the Supreme Court ruling on the constitutional one-year ban.

“As for the status, the Chairman of the Committee on Justice said that there are 10 more days, 10 session days. So, I said we have to abide by the ruling of the Supreme Court. We cannot ignore that. So, whatever the Supreme Court so decided, which is the interpretation of the law, Congress must follow that,” he said.

The lawmaker said he endorsed the complaint based on his past involvement in congressional investigations and his belief that the Vice President had not sufficiently addressed prior allegations.

“And not only that, but when it comes to the appreciation of the complaint, I saw it. That’s why I endorsed it because I believed in the complaint itself. I was the co-chair of the Quad Comm, we investigated that. I am also the vice chair of Good Government. Our Vice President, she did not take an oath. She did not answer the allegations. Maybe if she answered, it would be okay,” he said.

“But now is the time for the Vice President to answer all the allegations. She has the opportunity now,” he added.

Allegations

The fourth complaint focuses on Duterte’s alleged failure to fully disclose assets in her Statements of Assets, Liabilities and Net Worth (SALNs) and the possible accumulation of unexplained wealth disproportionate to her lawful income.

It accuses her of culpable violation of the Constitution, betrayal of public trust, graft and corruption, bribery, and other high crimes, citing the rapid encashment of PHP125 million in December 2022, allegedly liquidated within 11 days, and subsequent findings by the Commission on Audit flagging irregularities. COA later issued notices of suspension and disallowance covering PHP73.287 million in questioned expenditures.

Three earlier complaints focused on alleged misuse of confidential funds, public statements, and refusal to recognize congressional oversight.

With four pending complaints, the House must determine whether the allegations, particularly those involving SALN disclosures and unexplained wealth, meet the constitutional threshold for impeachment under Article XI of the 1987 Constitution, which allows removal of the Vice President if found guilty.