The Senate impeachment court on Tuesday allowed the prosecution to withdraw three impeachment articles against Vice President Sara Duterte, leaving only the charge of unexplained wealth.
“The court accepts and confirms the prosecution’s manifestation. Articles I, III and IV, from this point forward are deemed withdrawn,” Presiding Officer Sen. Francis “Chiz” Escudero said.
Escudero said Articles I, III and IV, which concern the alleged misuse of confidential funds, bribery at the Department of Education (DepEd), and grave threats, respectively, would no longer be submitted to the senator-judges for a vote or verdict.
The ruling came after 38 days of proceedings, during which lead prosecutor Rep. Gerville Luistro manifested the prosecution’s intention to abandon the three articles.
Escudero said Articles I and IV were deemed withdrawn with prejudice against Duterte.
He stressed that impeachment proceedings should not be treated as a process in which charges can be filed, withdrawn and later revived at will.
“Congress must never be light-handed or nonchalant in initiating and prosecuting articles of impeachment,” he said. “Impeachment is not a charge that may simply be filed, pursued through the presentation of evidence, and thereafter withdrawn without the respondent’s consent.”
“Having elected to withdraw the articles after resting its case, the prosecution must therefore accept the legal consequences of that withdrawal,” Escudero said.
“The House of Representatives may not treat the impeachment process as a mere opportunity to file, withdraw, and subsequently revive substantially the same constitutional accusations at will,” he added.
Escudero clarified, however, that the restriction on reviving Articles I and IV applies only to impeachment proceedings and does not prevent criminal, civil, administrative, electoral, disciplinary or other professional proceedings in accordance with the law.
Article III, which concerns alleged bribery and corruption at DepEd, was deemed withdrawn without prejudice. Escudero said the prosecution did not present evidence under this article, placing it on a different procedural footing from the other two withdrawn charges.
Its withdrawal is limited to the ongoing trial, meaning it cannot be revived in the current proceedings but may be pursued again in a separate proceeding, subject to applicable law.
The presiding officer said the withdrawal would spare Duterte’s defense team from having to present evidence against allegations the prosecution had formally abandoned.
Duterte will no longer be required to defend herself against the three withdrawn articles, and the sub judice rule will no longer cover them, Escudero said.
The court’s ruling followed the precedent set during the 2012 impeachment trial of then Chief Justice Renato Corona.
Escudero explained that the prosecution’s manifestation did not automatically extinguish the articles, as the court’s approval was necessary to give effect to the withdrawal.
He said in his ruling: the manifestation “does not by itself extinguish articles I, III and IV. At most, it presents a request for the approval of this court.”
Granting the request, he said, promotes judicial economy and avoids requiring the respondent to spend additional time and resources defending charges the prosecution no longer intends to pursue.
With the three articles withdrawn, the impeachment trial will proceed only on the remaining allegations involving Duterte’s unexplained wealth, alleged false statements in her statements of assets, liabilities and net worth (SALN), and alleged failure to divest from business interests.
The remaining article will be submitted to the senator-judges for their consideration and eventual vote.
