The chairman of the Philippine House of Representatives Committee on Public Accounts, Terry Ridon, stated that, given the current evidence against Vice President Sara Duterte, reaching the 106-vote threshold required to push forward impeachment is "not difficult."
He pointed out that, according to the Philippine Constitution, at least one-third of the 318 House members, which is 106 votes, must support the impeachment articles before they can be transmitted to the Senate for trial.
Ridon said at a forum on Saturday that if things progress smoothly, final support could even reach as many as 215 votes.
He said that the current evidence base includes multiple financial investigation items, among which are allegations of the misuse of roughly 612.5 million pesos in confidential funds, as well as the disallowance of 448 million pesos by the Commission on Audit.
He also mentioned transaction records totalling approximately 6.7 billion pesos involving the Duterte-Carpio couple, as well as accusations related to threats against top government officials, all of which are regarded as key evidence.
Ridon emphasized that this data has already been clearly presented at the hearings and constitutes an important evidentiary basis supporting impeachment.
He also revealed that the House Committee on Justice had unanimously determined that there is sufficient cause to propose impeachment and expects the related report to be submitted for review on Monday.
He stated that the House could complete voting within two weeks at the earliest and then transmit the articles of impeachment to the Senate.
In response to claims from Duterte’s side that the investigation is "entrapment," Ridon denied the accusation, saying such statements are baseless, and stressed that all allegations are backed by data.
He described the amounts involved as "as massive as a whale" and said the investigation has gone beyond the guessing stage.
Ridon said at a forum on Saturday that if things progress smoothly, final support could even reach as many as 215 votes.
He said that the current evidence base includes multiple financial investigation items, among which are allegations of the misuse of roughly 612.5 million pesos in confidential funds, as well as the disallowance of 448 million pesos by the Commission on Audit.
He also mentioned transaction records totalling approximately 6.7 billion pesos involving the Duterte-Carpio couple, as well as accusations related to threats against top government officials, all of which are regarded as key evidence.
Ridon emphasized that this data has already been clearly presented at the hearings and constitutes an important evidentiary basis supporting impeachment.
He also revealed that the House Committee on Justice had unanimously determined that there is sufficient cause to propose impeachment and expects the related report to be submitted for review on Monday.
He stated that the House could complete voting within two weeks at the earliest and then transmit the articles of impeachment to the Senate.
In response to claims from Duterte’s side that the investigation is "entrapment," Ridon denied the accusation, saying such statements are baseless, and stressed that all allegations are backed by data.
He described the amounts involved as "as massive as a whale" and said the investigation has gone beyond the guessing stage.