Manila, Philippines — Something big is happening in the government, and it’s all about Vice President Sara Duterte. On Tuesday, a group of 22 senators met like judges in a special court called an “impeachment court.” Their job? To decide what to do about a serious complaint filed against Vice President Duterte.
But instead of starting the full trial, the senators voted 18-5 to send the complaint back to the House of Representatives — that’s the group who first sent it to them. This doesn’t mean the case is gone or forgotten. It just means the Senate wants the House to double-check if the complaint follows the rules of the Constitution (that’s the country’s biggest and most important law).
What’s This All About?
A group of people in the House of Representatives said that Vice President Duterte may have done something wrong and needed to be impeached — that means removed from office. So, they sent this official complaint to the Senate for trial.
But before the trial could begin, Senator Ronald “Bato” Dela Rosa said the Senate should stop the case right away. Another senator, Alan Peter Cayetano, said instead of stopping it, why not just return it to the House and ask them to make sure everything in the complaint is done correctly?
After a lot of talking and debating, the senators voted.
Who Voted “Yes” to Return the Complaint?
These 18 senators agreed to send the complaint back to the House for review:
-
Alan Peter Cayetano
-
Pia Cayetano
-
JV Ejercito
-
Jinggoy Estrada
-
Bong Go
-
Lito Lapid
-
Loren Legarda
-
Imee Marcos
-
Bong Revilla Jr.
-
Robin Padilla
-
Francis Tolentino
-
Raffy Tulfo
-
Joel Villanueva
-
Cynthia Villar
-
Mark Villar
-
Miguel Zubiri
-
Chiz Escudero (the Senate President)
-
Ronald Dela Rosa (who made the first motion)
Who Said “No”?
These 5 senators didn’t agree and wanted the Senate to move forward with the trial:
-
Aquilino “Koko” Pimentel III
-
Risa Hontiveros
-
Nancy Binay
-
Grace Poe
-
Sherwin Gatchalian
Why Only 22 Senators Voted?
There are usually 23 senators, but one seat is now empty because Senator Sonny Angara was chosen to become the new Secretary of Education by President Ferdinand Marcos Jr. So only 22 senators were present to take their oath as impeachment judges.
What Happens Next?
Now, the House of Representatives has to review the impeachment complaint and make sure it follows all the rules. If everything checks out, they can send it back to the Senate for a full trial.
This is not the end of the case. It’s just a pause to make sure everything is fair and legal.
