(UPDATE) VICE PRESIDENT Sara Duterte said she seriously doubts the fairness of the impeachment proceedings being prepared against her, since her political opponents in Congress had long been plotting to remove her from office.
At a press conference in The Hague on Saturday, Duterte described the impeachment effort as a political vendetta.
She also explained her controversial “bloodbath” remark, describing it as a symbol of her persecution — what she called a “political crucifixion” by the administration.
Vice President Sara Duterte addresses supporters of their family who gathered at The Hague. PHOTO FROM OVP COMMUNICATIONS
“I think many misunderstood the word bloodbath — and many didn’t want to understand. They refused to understand what it meant,” Duterte said.
“We have always said the impeachment is political persecution. It’s the administration going after me after I resigned from the Cabinet. And if it’s persecution, it’s a crucifixion. And when there’s a crucifixion, there’s blood — so it’s a bloodbath. My bloodbath. I’m just sad that many people refuse to understand the context wherein I give statements,” she said.
Duterte said the move to impeach her was the result of months of scheming by her political foes, who she said had been trying to “fish for evidence” since the 2023 budget hearings.
She pointed to comments from former Marikina 2nd District representative Stella Quimbo as evidence.
“We heard former Congresswoman Quimbo say, ‘Let’s stick to our plan.’ So there was already a plan to fish for evidence,” she said.
When those efforts failed, lawmakers pivoted to an investigation into confidential funds but only targeted the Office of the Vice President, despite other agencies also managing such funds.
“What they did there was harass and threaten our staff from the Office of the Vice President. So you can see the pattern,” Duterte said.
Even when those inquiries produced no solid case, legislators proceeded to file the Articles of Impeachment, allegedly rushing the process and disregarding proper procedures, she said.
“From the three Articles of Impeachment filed, they did not follow procedure. And there’s also a question about verification — how fast do you get signatures from 300-plus congressmen in just a few hours? How is that possible? Did they even read what they were signing?”
Asked whether she expects the impeachment trial to proceed, Duterte said she has left the matter to her legal team, which she noted has been preparing since late 2023.
“At this point, I really do not know if the impeachment trial will push through, but I told the defense team to prepare for whatever rituality, and leave it up to the Senate to decide on the Articles of Impeachment,” Duterte said.
Despite the looming legal and political battle, Duterte described herself as emotionally detached and said that she had been preparing herself mentally and physically for months.
“Emotionally, I don’t feel anything at all anymore about the impeachment. The first time I heard it was in November 2023 and I was already preparing for it,” she said.
“Physically, I prepare by making sure I get eight hours of sleep and take the vitamins doctors recommend.”
Duterte confirmed she is scheduled to return to the Philippines on June 3 or June 4, following her engagements in the Netherlands.
“We’re just waiting for confirmation on whether we can actually visit the detention unit on June 3.”
Duterte has been in The Hague for official meetings, including those related to the detention of his father, former president Rodrigo Duterte.
