Vice President Sara Duterte warned that the proposed ₱7.2-trillion 2027 national budget could become tied to impeachment politics, questioning whether public funds could be used to pressure senator-judges or reward lawmakers who backed the case against her.
Her remarks came after House prosecutors sought to withdraw Articles I, III and IV of the impeachment complaint, leaving only Article II, or the unexplained wealth charge, for trial. With the impeachment court on break, the Senate began committee-level hearings on the proposed budget.
Duterte cautioned that the budget could be used as leverage in the impeachment proceedings.
“Is the budget being used to serve the Filipino people or has it become a bargaining chip to pressure senators who will sit as judges and reward those who vote ‘yes’ in the House of Representatives?” she said in an Oct. 14 statement.
She also used the withdrawal of the articles to question the strength of the case initially presented by House prosecutors, arguing that they lacked sufficient evidence.
“You wielded the subpoena powers of the House of Representatives, yet failed to produce what was needed to substantiate your accusations,” she said.
“After all that, where is the evidence?” she asked.
“The public deserves better than political theater disguised as accountability.”
The House approved the proposed ₱7.2-trillion 2027 national budget on third and final reading on Oct. 12, with 281 lawmakers voting in favor, 13 against and one abstention. The measure has since been transmitted to the Senate for deliberations.
Senate plenary deliberations are scheduled to begin in late November 2026, with Nov. 23 targeted as the start date, following the temporary break and the resumption of the Senate’s regular session and impeachment proceedings in November.
The Senate aims to approve the spending plan by the second week of December 2026.
