MANILA, Philippines – Vice President and Education Secretary Sara Duterte on Monday, November 20, shunned a rumored impeachment plot against her, saying that she already spoke with President Ferdinand Marcos Jr. regarding the matter.

“I believe [that] I still have the trust of President Ferdinand Marcos Jr. Why? Because before he left, I asked him about the impeachment. He told me that it’s true that he knows about the impeachment,” Duterte said without giving further details about her supposed conversation with the President.

Duterte was asked about her reaction to the President’s statement on November 19 in Hawaii, USA that the he doesn’t want the Vice President to be impeached.

“We don’t want her to be impeached, she does not deserve to be impeached. So, we will make sure that this is something that we will pay very close attention to,” Marcos said in a press conference.

Impeachment rumors started after ACT Teachers Representative France Castro, a staunch critic of Duterte, said that there were discussions cuirculating among House members on the possible impeachment of the Vice President.

In an interview with ANC’s Headstart on Monday, Castro said that there have been “casual conversations” among lawmakers about Duterte’s ouster, but that the talks were not a “serious matter.”

Duterte had been under fire over her use of confidential funds, especially after it was learned that the Office of the President transferred P125 million in confidential funds to the OVP in 2022. It is now the subject of a petition before the Supreme Court, seeking the return of the funds, as the petitioners argued it was a “clear usurpation of the power of Congress.” (READ: The dangers of justifying VP Sara Duterte’s 2022 confidential funds)

Public outrage over the confidential funds mess is believed to have pulled down Duterte’s approval rating to 73% in September, an 11-percentage point drop compared to her 84% score in June. – Rappler.com