The impeachment trial of Vice President Sara Duterte of the Philippines is slated to start on Monday. This trial underscores the tense rivalry between two dominant political families in the country.
Sara Duterte, daughter of former Philippine President Rodrigo Duterte, faces accusations from lawmakers of embezzlement and issuing death threats against President Ferdinand Marcos Jr. This conflict surfaces four years after the political alliance formed in 2022 between the Marcoses and the Dutertes.
Ms. Duterte, who assumed the role of vice president in 2022 on Mr. Marcos’s ticket, disputes these charges. She argues they aim to thwart her future political plans, including a presidential bid in 2028, following her father’s legacy. Rodrigo Duterte, her father, is currently imprisoned in The Hague, facing trial for alleged crimes against humanity linked to a harsh anti-drug campaign.
Last month, Ms. Duterte’s legal counsel dismissed the case, describing it as “constitutionally infirm, procedurally defective and substantively deficient.”
In both the Philippines and the United States, the impeachment process involves the Senate conducting a trial and deciding on the conviction of an impeached official by the House of Representatives. The Philippine House of Representatives had overwhelmingly voted to impeach Ms. Duterte in May.