It wasnโt so much a burial as it was a cryogenic freeze when the Senate voted to archive the impeachment complaint against Vice President Sara Duterte. The decision โ 19 in favor, 4 against, and 1 abstention โ came on the heels of the Supreme Courtโs ruling declaring the complaint unconstitutional and imposing a one-year ban on filing another before February 6, 2026.
But listen closely to the language of Senate Minority Leaders Panfilo โPingโ Lacson and Vicente โTitoโ Sotto III: the case isnโt dead. Itโs on standby, waiting for the political equivalent of a defibrillator โ a Supreme Court reversal.
Archiving as strategy, not surrender
Lacson, who abstained from the vote, made it clear: if the High Court changes course, heโll move to pull the impeachment complaint from the archives. Sotto is on the same page. To them, โarchivingโ is a holding pattern, not a concession of defeat.
In legislative politics, this is more than semantics. Archiving preserves the complaintโs procedural life. It means they can bypass the cumbersome process of filing a new case โ with all the political arm-twisting and public spectacle that entails โ and simply thaw the existing one.
The Supreme Courtโs chilling effect
Sottoโs real worry isnโt about reviving this complaint โ itโs about whether future impeachments will even stand a chance. The Supreme Courtโs new guidelines donโt just raise the bar; they practically rebuild it in reinforced concrete. Endorsers in the House must now sign sworn affidavits affirming they fully understand the complaint. Every factual allegation must be backed by specific, admissible evidence before filing.
In Sottoโs words, this is a โconstitutional amendmentโ by judicial fiat โ and one that tilts the balance of power away from Congress, the body historically tasked with holding top officials to account.
Power, politics, and precedent
This is why the โrevive buttonโ matters. Itโs not only about Sara Duterteโs political fate, but also about the precedent this episode will set for the accountability of future vice presidents, presidents, and other impeachable officials.
If the Courtโs ruling stands, impeachment โ already a political long shot in a country where party loyalty trumps principle โ could become a legal impossibility. If it reverses, the Senate will face a test: will its members follow through on their word, or will political expediency smother their resolve?
The bigger picture
In the end, this is less a legal drama than a power play. Itโs about who gets to decide when the second-highest official in the land should be removed: the peopleโs representatives in Congress or the magistrates in Padre Faura.
By keeping the complaint in the archives instead of killing it outright, Lacson and Sotto have ensured that the next move belongs to the Court. If the justices reverse themselves, the Senate will have no more excuses โ and the country will see whether this was a genuine act of political foresight or just another exercise in legislative theatrics.
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