Vice President Sara Duterte has suggested that the proposed 2027 national budget is being used to pressure the senators who will judge her in the impeachment trial. Senate leaders and Malacañang say the claim has no basis.
In a Facebook statement on Wednesday, Oct. 14, Duterte cited allegations of “cash distribution and political maneuvering” around the budget. She asked whether it “has become a bargaining chip to pressure senators who will sit as judges and reward those who vote ‘yes’ in the House of Representatives.” She warned that if impeachment and the budget are used as tools of “political survival of the corrupt,” it is the people who are being taken for granted. In the reports we reviewed, she did not name specific transactions or individuals.
On Thursday, Oct. 15, senators pushed back. Sen. Sherwin Gatchalian said the budget is not connected to the trial’s judgment and that the aim is an impartial, fair decision. “There’s no basis for that kind of allegation,” he said. Sen. Erwin Tulfo said he knew of no pressure on senator-judges, noting that no vote has been taken and the trial isn’t over. He called the claim “her opinion.” Sen. Vicente Sotto III said the Senate would not allow the budget to be used to influence votes, since “the budget is one thing, and the impeachment is another.”
Malacañang, through press officer Claire Castro, said the Vice President offered no evidence. Castro said the executive does not interfere in the prosecution’s decisions or those of the senator-judges, and that Congress holds the power of the purse. She suggested Duterte attend the bicameral conference on the budget, if it has begun, if she has doubts.
The exchange comes as Senate finance committee chair JV Ejercito has flagged nearly P260 billion in House realignments affecting transport, health and disaster programs. The Palace said the issue can be raised in the bicameral talks.
Both sides’ statements are claims. No evidence of vote-buying has been presented publicly, and none has been ruled on by any court.
