The Senate may have tucked the impeachment papers into a drawer labeled Locked Up Forthwith, however, Vice President Sara Duterte’s political weather forecast still reads: stormy with a chance of subpoenas.
Two Damoclean swords remain suspended – one courtesy of Congress, the other sharpened in The Hague – dangling like Mary Grace Piattos and Jay Kamote scribbled on receipts to justify P612.5 million in confidential funds. Over her 2028 ambitions, they hover not with grace, but with the greasy fingerprints of impunity.
Welcome to the ATABAY sequel, where silence isn’t golden – it’s just heavily lawyered. We trace the fault lines beneath the hush, the legal acrobatics, and yes, the elephant still lounging in the courtroom.
Politics, legacy, and peril converge in a high-stakes odyssey. Read on as the unravelling begins.
Two Ominous Swords
When the Senate archived VP Sara’s impeachment case, many thought the storm had passed. But in truth, the thunder merely paused. Recall the Supreme Court’s (SC) ruling: it “does not absolve petitioner Duterte from any of the charges.” Even President Bongbong Marcos clarified his position that the SC ruling did not resolve Sara Duterte’s accountability: “The Supreme Court decision does not have any bearing on the rightness or wrongness of the merits of the case.”
Beneath the surface of procedural jargon and partisan applause, two ominous blades continue to hover above VP Sara – one forged in the contentious halls of Congress, the other sharpened in the solemn chambers of the International Criminal Court (ICC)
These are the twin Damoclean swords that now define her political odyssey: the impeachment case that refuses to fade into quiet irrelevance, and the looming Hague proceedings against her father, former President Rodrigo Duterte (PRRD). Each casts its own shadow – legal, moral, and symbolic. But together, they threaten to reshape the very contours of her 2028 presidential ambitions, turning what was once a confident ascent into a perilous balancing act.
Sword One: The Impeachment That Refuses to Fade
While the Senate has shelved the case, the SC, on the other hand, remains entangled in a motion for reconsideration filed by the House of Representatives. The delay, cloaked in legal technicalities – such as the hair-splitting over the word forthwith – has wounded the two institutions that meant to uphold justice. Instead, they’ve become sanctuaries of ambiguity.
Public backlash has been swift and unforgiving. Legal luminaries, academic voices, lawyers’ groups, and ordinary citizens have spoken in unison. Nearly 9 out of 10 Filipinos want VP Sara to address the impeachment charges against her and clear her name of corruption allegations, a new Social Weather Stations (SWS) survey reveals. The credibility of both the Senate and the SC has taken a hit, their perceived impartiality now questioned by the very people they serve.
Sword Two: The Hague Case Looms
This coming September 23, the ICC begins its proceedings against PRRD for alleged crimes against humanity. While VP Sara is not on trial, the political and moral proximity as a daughter is undeniable. The recent legal maneuvers to shield her from impeachment have further reinforced public perception of the Duterte brand: a legacy of legal weaponization and institutional manipulation.
Exhibit A: “I don’t understand what the prosecution is trying to do! Put me in triple jeopardy after nearly 7 years in unjust detention? Hindi na lang katawa-tawa ang ginawa nila, nakakagalit na,” Leila De Lima vented after the Department of Justice withdrew the appeal of the prosecutors. “Nila” refers to these pro-Duterte prosecutors who wanted her conviction on the trumped-up illegal drug charges arising from her being the arch-enemy of PRRD and his now-infamous war on drugs.
The Hague case sharpens the second sword, not just through association, but through the emboldening of complainants who now figure out clearly a Duterte machine pattern, a precedent, and a scheme. Thus, like it or not, the stacks of evidence grow increasingly. The testimonies solidify perforce. And the shadow lengthens.
The Elephant in the Courtroom
Let’s not pretend the courtroom is empty. Twelve of the Supreme Court justices were appointed by PRRD. A majority of the Senate is his political allies. The architecture of power remains intact, even as the façade begins to crack.
Despite the celebratory noise from the Duterte Diehard Supporters (DDS), the reality is stark: VP Sara’s impeachment case is not resolved – it’s metastasizing – swelling and burgeoning from one part of the body to another. The longer it’s delayed, the more corrosive it becomes – the more torturous the agony of VP Sara and the nation as the impeachment process prolongs. And with the Hague case on the horizon, her political future is not just uncertain – it’s increasingly untenable.
Sara’s Road to 2028 Is Paved with Shadows
In the theater of Philippine politics, silence is rarely neutral. It is often choreographed, weaponized, and sold as stability. But beneath the hush lies a growing disquiet – a public that sees through the curtains: a Supreme Court and a Senate that risk losing their moral compass, and a political figure whose ascent is haunted by the ghosts of legacy and law.
If acquitted, as the pro-Duterte Senate is widely expected to ensure, Vice President Sara may yet chart a course toward the 2028 presidential race. But should she choose to run, she will not do so unburdened. She will move forward beneath the twin shadows of unresolved scrutiny and lingering doubt - each Damoclean sword suspended by the thinnest thread of public trust.
As she takes each step on that perilous stormy road, it will not be in solitude. A nation wearied yet watchful will be trailing close behind, measuring not just her ambition, but the moral weight it carries.
Content and editing put together in collaboration with Microsoft Bing AI-powered Co-pilot & Grammarly
Head photo courtesy of Microsoft Bing AI-powered Co-pilot, design by Canva
Still photos courtesy of EHEM Instagram, Rappler, ChatGPT Image Creator, ICC, & Stock Cake
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