MANILA — At least 30 members of the National Unity Party (NUP) are expected to support the impeachment of Vice President Sara Duterte, a figure that could help push total affirmative votes in the House of Representatives to as many as 180, House Deputy Speaker and Antipolo 2nd District Rep. Ronaldo Puno said.

In a report, it said that Puno, who is also NUP chairman, made the disclosure a day after the party announced it would adopt a “conscience vote” on the impeachment instead of taking a unified position.

“The majority [of us in NUP] is in favor of sending this to the Senate. We have a hardcore group that is still opposed to the proposal, and some who want to abstain,” Puno said in a Zoom press conference.

He said internal consultations showed that most NUP members favor transmitting the Articles of Impeachment against Duterte to the Senate.

“We will have one more round of district consultations, but the situation in NUP is that a majority favors transmitting the Articles of Impeachment [against the Vice President] to the Senate,” he said.

“A little over half of us are in favor. There are at least 30,” Puno added.

Puno said that once combined with other political blocs, the number of House members supporting impeachment could surpass the constitutional one-third threshold of the 318-member chamber.

“If you count Lakas-CMD with 60 votes, then 30 for us in NUP, and Partido Federal has 51 members—even if you just count 30 for Partido Federal, the number is already at 120. NPC has 49 members; if you count 30 for NPC, that brings it to 150,” he said.

“Then there are 63 party-list lawmakers, whose majority is really in favor of impeaching the Vice President. If there is a majority, that’s already good. I suspect it will be about 180,” he added.

Puno noted that Lakas-CMD is led by President Ferdinand Marcos Jr.’s cousin and House Majority Leader Martin Romualdez, while Partido Federal ng Pilipinas is the President’s party. The Nationalist People’s Coalition is led in the House by Deputy Speaker Jayjay Suarez.

He also mentioned the Nacionalista Party as part of the majority coalition, though with fewer members compared to other blocs.

Vice President Duterte, speaking in an interview from The Hague, questioned the confidence of lawmakers who have expressed certainty about her impeachment.

“If it’s just ordinary individuals, like ordinary Filipinos, let’s leave it alone. Because that’s their opinion, that’s their feelings, you can’t change someone’s feelings,” she said.

“But it’s probably different when it’s a congressman who’s saying it or a senator who’s saying it because you’re going to ask, ‘why are you so sure that it’s over?’” Duterte added.

Puno said alleged unexplained wealth is central to building the impeachment case.

“The burden of proof in showing that a Statement of Assets, Liabilities and Net Worth (SALN) is fraudulent is on the one making the accusation,” he said.

“The declared wealth [of the Vice President] is around P80 million, which nobody believes, and which the bank deposit records from the AMLC were intended to disprove,” he added, referring to the Anti-Money Laundering Council.

The Vice President previously declared a net worth of P88 million in her joint SALN with her husband as of end-2024.

Puno cited past impeachment cases, including that of former President Joseph Estrada, saying SALN discrepancies could be a key line of evidence.

During House Justice Committee hearings, Anti-Money Laundering Council officials testified that around P6.7 billion in covered and suspicious transactions were recorded under the names of Duterte and her husband, Manases Carpio. Of this, P3.7 billion was attributed to the Vice President, while P2.998 billion was linked to Carpio, along with P791 million in transactions with undetermined flows.

The Office of the Ombudsman also confirmed that Duterte’s joint SALN from 2019 to 2024 reported zero cash in bank accounts. Meanwhile, the Securities and Exchange Commission said businesses linked to the couple showed minimal profits or losses.

Duterte’s camp has said their cash holdings were reflected under “other assets” in their SALN.

Puno added that tax returns could become important if the case reaches the Senate impeachment court.

House Justice Committee Chair Gerville Luistro earlier said lawmakers’ votes would depend on evidence, party position, and conscience, noting that “what will be best for the country should also be considered.”

The House Rules Committee is expected to schedule plenary debates and voting, which may take place on May 11.