Impeachment slap for Duterte

Philippine civil society and religious leaders asked Congress yesterday to impeach Vice President Sara Duterte over complaints that include graft, incompetence and amassing ill-gotten wealth while in office.

The daughter of firebrand former president Rodrigo Duterte has been embroiled in a row with his successor Ferdinand Marcos Jr and is the subject of an enquiry into her spending by the House of Representatives.

The complaint includes 24 violations based on major grounds - culpable violation of the constitution, graft, bribery, betrayal of public trust.

Duterte "has reduced public office to a platform for violent rhetoric, personal enrichment, elitist entitlement and a shield for impunity," said one of the complainants.

"This impeachment is not just a legal battle but a moral crusade to restore dignity and decency to public service," said Leila de Lima, a staunch critic of an anti-narcotics campaign run by Duterte's father.

REUTERS