Romualdez: Impeachment court's move to return raps to House 'deeply concerning'

'Deeply concerning.'

That's how House Speaker Martin Romualdez described the Senate impeachment court's move to return the articles of impeachment against Vice President Sara Duterte to the House.

"I rise, not in defiance, but with resolve, guided by duty, grounded in principle. The decision of the Senate, sitting as an impeachment court, to return the articles of impeachment is deeply concerning,” Romualdez said in a speech Wednesday night. 

Romualdez, however, said that they "will comply with the requirements of the impeachment court" to ensure that the process continues. 

"In matters of truth and accountability, the House does not back down,” said Romualdez. 

The House of Representatives, meanwhile, has certified that the impeachment of Vice President Sara Duterte complied with the 1987 Constitution.

On a motion by Isabela Rep. Inno Dy, the House plenary deferred acceptance of the articles of impeachment until the Senate Impeachment Court has responded to the queries sought by the House prosecution panel regarding the remanding of the articles of impeachment.

With no objections, the motion was carried.

In a voice vote, the House plenary adopted House Resolution No. 2346, which certified that the impeachment initiated on February 5, 2025, against Sara Duterte fully complied with the constitution, including the circumstances on the filing of the first three impeachment complaints.

The Senate sitting as an impeachment court on Tuesday voted for the articles of impeachment to be returned to the House of Representatives without dismissing or terminating the case until such time that:

•  The House of Representatives certified to the non-violation of Article XI, Section 3, paragraph 5 of the Constitution, which provides that “No impeachment proceedings shall be initiated against the same official more than once within one year; include the circumstances on the filing of the first three impeachment complaints"; and
•  The House of Representatives of the 20th Congress communicated to the Senate that it was willing and ready to pursue the impeachment complaint against the Vice President.

Those who voted yes include Senate President Chiz Escudero and Senators Ronald “Bato” Dela Rosa, Robin Padilla, Christopher Lawrence "Bong" Go, Francis Tolentino, Imee Marcos, Cynthia Villar, Mark Villar, Jinggoy Estrada, JV Ejercito, Ramon Revilla Jr., Joel Villanueva, Lito Lapid, Alan Peter Cayetano, Pia Cayetano, Loren Legarda, Raffy Tulfo, and Juan Miguel Zubiri.

The negative votes came from Minority Leader Aquilino "Koko" Pimentel III, Deputy Minority Leader Risa Hontiveros, and Senators Grace Poe, Sherwin Gatchalian, and Nancy Binay. —VAL, GMA Integrated News