MANILA, Philippines — Vice President Sara Duterte believes she can win the case trying to remove her from her job.
She talked to reporters in Danao City, Cebu on Tuesday. She had just come back from a trip to The Hague, a city in the Netherlands. While she was there, she met with lawyers who might help her father, former President Rodrigo Duterte, who is now in jail.
Her father was arrested and sent to Scheveningen Prison. He is facing very serious charges from an international court. These charges are about the “war on drugs” he started when he was president, which hurt many people.
As soon as Vice President Sara came home, she met with her own lawyers to talk about her impeachment case. She said her lawyers are feeling very confident that they will win.
“Right after I got back from The Hague, we had a meeting. My lawyers told me they are now even more confident that we can win this case,” she said in Filipino.
Back in February, the House of Representatives voted to impeach her. That means they accused her of doing wrong things like breaking the law, bribery, and betraying the people’s trust.
The impeachment trial will begin on July 30. That’s when the Senate will become an impeachment court, like a special court that decides if she should lose her job or not.
Sara also said she wasn’t planning to join any election campaigns for the 2025 Midterm Elections. But she changed her mind after her father was arrested. She said what happened to him was unfair and called it an “extraordinary rendition.” That means he was taken by force and flown on a plane without any legal documents or permission, and sent to a different country.
She said her father asked her to help support the “Duter-10,” a group of 10 people running for senator under their political party, Partido Demokratiko Pilipino.
“It’s not much different now,” Sara said. “But now, more people are showing their support for President Duterte, and I want to thank them.”
