FACT CHECK: No impeachment complaint vs Marcos
Claim: President Ferdinand Marcos Jr. will be impeached after an attempt on the life of Vice President Sara Duterte.
Rating: FALSE
Why we fact-checked this: The video containing the claim has 88,895 views, 764 comments and 4,400 likes as of writing. It was posted on August 18 by a YouTube channel with 36,900 subscribers.
The title of the video says, “Confirmed!! PBBM ma-i-impeach na sa wakas! Matapos pagtangkaan ang buhay ni VP Sara! Karma!!” (Confirmed!! President Bongbong Marcos will finally be impeached! After an attempt on the life of Vice President Sara! Karma!!)
The video’s narrator also claims that authorities have confirmed the brewing impeachment complaint.
The facts: No credible evidence supports the claim. There is no pending impeachment complaint initiated against Marcos by Congress and no reports from major news outlets.
There is also a mismatch between what is claimed in the video’s title and its actual content. In the video, the narrator claims that the supposed impeachment complaint is related to allegations of corruption involving Marcos, not the supposed threat on the Vice President’s life.
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Impeachment process: Under Section 2, Article XI of the 1987 Constitution, the President, Vice President, members of the Supreme Court, members of constitutional commissions, and the Ombudsman may be removed from office through impeachment for “culpable violation of the Constitution, treason, bribery, graft and corruption, other high crimes, or betrayal of public trust.”
An impeachment complaint can be filed by any member of the House of Representatives or by a Filipino citizen with a House member’s endorsement. The Articles of Impeachment must receive the support of at least one-third of the House for it to proceed to the Senate, where a two-thirds vote is necessary to convict and remove the impeached official. (FAST FACTS: How does impeachment work?)
Marcos-Duterte rift: The claim emerged amid ongoing political tensions between the Marcos and Duterte camps following the collapse of their alliance with Duterte’s exit from the Marcos Cabinet last June. In August, the Vice President openly criticized the government and how the country is being led. Marcos also said the two have not spoken since Duterte stepped down as education secretary.
No threat on Duterte’s life: In July, Duterte appealed for protection for her family members from “any violence” after 75 police personnel were recalled from her security detail. The Philippine National Police, however, said the Vice President faces no security threat, adding that nearly 400 government personnel continue to provide security for her. – Mahmooda Aziza Bhatti/Rappler.com
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Mahmooda Aziza Bhatti is a Rappler Volunteer. She is a third-year Education student at the Bulacan State University