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President Ferdinand Marcos, Jr. delivers his inaugural address as the 17th President of the Philippines at the National Museum in Manila on June 30, 2022. George Calvelo, ABS-CBN News

Article (news)

Some House panel members see allegations in De Jesus impeachment complaint vs Marcos 'insufficient in substance'

Vivienne Gulla

ABS-CBN News

<div><span class="fr-img-caption fr-fic fr-dib" style="width:960px;display:block" width="960"><span class="fr-img-wrap"><img src="https://od2-image-api.abs-cbn.com/prod/editorImage/1770114486737paint.png" style="width:960px;display:block;height:auto" class="fr-fic fr-dib" width="960"/><span class="fr-inner" style="text-align:left">President Ferdinand Marcos, Jr. delivers his inaugural address as the 17th President of the Philippines at the National Museum in Manila on June 30, 2022. George Calvelo, ABS-CBN News</span></span></span></div><div style="text-align:left"><br/></div><p>MANILA — Some members of the House Committee on Justice found the allegations in the first impeachment complaint against President Ferdinand Marcos Jr. to be “insufficient in substance”.</p><p>The panel is scheduled to vote on the matter on Wednesday.</p><p>During the resumption of the committee meeting on Tuesday, the House committee tackled the sufficiency in substance of the complaint filed by lawyer Andre de Jesus.</p><p>“Sufficiency in substance is… about whether the complaints allege ultimate facts, not mere conclusions, whether they show a personal culpable act or omission by the impeachable official, and whether those acts as pleaded amount to culpable violation of the Constitution, prison, bribery, draft and corruption, other high crimes, or betrayal of public trust, as the Constitution strictly enumerates,&quot; House Committee on Justice Chairperson Gerville Luistro said.</p><p>&quot;Not every alleged irregularity in government is impeachable. Not every claim of corruption automatically implicates the official,” she added. </p><div><a href="https://www.abs-cbn.com/news/nation/2026/2/2/house-begins-tackling-marcos-impeachment-complaints-1019">House panel finds Marcos impeachment complaints &#x27;sufficient in form&#x27;</a></div><p>Bicol Saro party-list Rep. Terry Ridon asked whether the documents attached to the impeachment complaints were certified true copy or authentic records. But Kabataan party-list Rep. Renee Co said it should be discussed at a later stage, if the complaints would be deemed sufficient in substance. </p><p>Voting 24-21, the House panel decided to consider the authenticity of the attachments in the impeachment complaints as part of deliberations on sufficiency in substance.</p><p>Ridon noted that most of the annexes in the De Jesus complaint were &quot;news items.&quot; </p><p>&quot;There are only three annexes that are official records, on which I am asking on whether or not there exists certified true copy for it when it was submitted to the House… It might be insufficient for evidence to be based on mere news articles only,” he said.</p><div><strong> <br/></strong></div><div><strong>&#x27;INSUFFICIENT&#x27;</strong></div><div><br/></div><p>Some House panel members asserted there was “no basis” to hold the President accountable over the first allegation in the De Jesus complaint, which accused Marcos of violating the Constitution and betraying public trust by surrendering former President Rodrigo Duterte to the International Criminal Court.</p><p>The complaint tagged it as an alleged “kidnapping”, but some committee members disputed this.</p><p>“This was not a kidnapping. This was an impelementation of a warrant that had been issued by Interpol… Walang batayan para sabihin na may pananagutan ang ehekutibo dito sa pag-aresto sa dating pangulo,” Ridon said.</p><div><a href="https://www.abs-cbn.com/news/nation/2026/2/2/complainant-behind-duterte-impeachment-complaint-regrets-not-filing-one-vs-marcos-1900">Complainant behind Duterte impeachment complaint regrets not filing one vs. Marcos</a></div><p>“Honorable Nisay, the question is very specific. Whether or not you are aware of a case of kidnapping filed against the impeachable official?” Luistro asked Pusong Pinoy party-list Rep. Jernie Jett Nisay, who endorsed the first impeachment complaint against the President.</p><p>“No, no, no. That is no, ma&#x27;am,” Nisay replied.</p><p>“There must be an overt act personally attributed to the President.. How can we say that the impeachable official should be liable because of the supposed action of the PNP in this case?“ GP party-list Rep. Jan Padiernos inquired.</p><p>“I think po the fact na wala siyang ginawa,” Nisay answered.</p><p>“Is omission equivalent to an impeachable offense?” Padiernosa asked again.</p><p>“For us po, it’s a yes,” Nisay said.</p><p>Some congressmen also found the second argument in the complaint, accusing the President of being unfit to serve due to alleged drug addiction, to be “lacking in evidence”.</p><p>“There is no evidence that the President is using drugs. Only statements of some persons,” Cagayan de Oro City Second District Rep. Rufus Rodriguez said.</p><p>“Stating that there are accusations do not consitute factual allegations of the addiction… Unfitness per se is not a ground for impeachment. This second ground is insufficient in substance,” ML party-list Rep. Leila de Lima said.</p><div><a href="https://www.abs-cbn.com/news/nation/2026/1/19/marcos-impeachment-complaint-1004">First impeachment complaint filed against Marcos</a></div><p>Even congressmen from the House minority, who strongly opposed the unprogrammed appropriations, do not consider the third argument in the De Jesus complaint to be sufficient in substance.</p><p>It alleged that the President committed betrayal of public trust when he failed to veto the UA.</p><p>Walang personal na kaalaman ‘yung complainant kaya hind niya naipresenta nang maayos ang complaint na ito… Batayan lamang ang news articles. Hindi sapat ang substance ng complaint na ito,” Caloocan City Second District Rep. Edgar Erice said.</p><p>“The issue here is not the constitutionality of the unprogrammed appropriations... But whether facts as alleged on the face of the complaint… can satisfactorily establish betrayal of public trust... These are mere conclusions, and therefore insufficient,” De Lima added.</p><p>“The complaint does not specify which particular provisions are unconstitutional and require veto… The recital of facts appears to be lacking,” ACT Teachers party-list Rep. Antonio Tinio said.</p><div><br/></div><div><strong>&#x27;HEARSAY&#x27;</strong></div><div><br/></div><p>At least one House panel member tagged as “hearsay” the fourth allegation in the complaint, which accuses the President of graft and corruption through alleged kickbacks and ghost projects.</p><p>“Everything that is said here is hearsay,” Manila 6th District Rep. Bienvenido Abante Jr. said.</p><p>“There is a statement here about Ako Bicol party-list. This is a narration of fact the recital of fact however the problem with this fact is that it was delivered to respondent’s allies if you can look at this, not to the president… We’ll have to hear this particular person. He has to be present. Otherwise it is a piece of paper and a piece of a video that is allowed to be introduced in any proceeding,” Rodriguez noted.</p><p>On the fifth allegation in the De Jesus complaint that the President created the Independent Commission for Infrastructure to supposedly shield corrupt allies, some congressmen said they do not see basis for it.</p><p>“The body of the complaint does not contain any express provision in the ICI’s charter that limits investigations only to political opponents, nor does it contain any instances… exempting allies. In fact, I remember that even the President’s son was summonned to the ICI. Nor does the complaint state any rule by the ICI which bars or obstructs any investigation against allies,” Cagayan de Oro City First District Rep. Lordan Suan said.</p><p>“The ICI is a complete failure, as evidenced by the resignations of the two members of the ICI. Pero hindi nangangahulugan na ang Pangulo ay ginawa ito para pagtakpan ang kanyang allies. Ito ay isang speculation, a conclusion, rather than a fact. I don’t think this is a sufficient basis to impeach a President,” Erice added.</p><p>The House panel will deliberate on the sufficiency of substance of the second impeachment complaint filed by Liza Maza and other members of progressive groups on Wednesday. It will then hold separate voting for the sufficiency of substance of the first and the second complaints, according to Luistro.</p><div><strong>RELATED VIDEO: </strong></div><div><span class="fr-video fr-deletable fr-fvc fr-dvb fr-draggable" contenteditable="false" draggable="true"><iframe width="640" height="360" src="https://www.youtube.com/embed/0HX9Dzk4MrA?&amp;wmode=opaque&amp;rel=0" frameBorder="0" allowfullscreen="" class="fr-draggable"></iframe></span><br/></div>

<p>Some members of the House Committee on Justice found the allegations in the first impeachment complaint against President Ferdinand Marcos Jr. to be “insufficient in substance”.</p>

Some members of the House Committee on Justice found the allegations in the first impeachment complaint against President Ferdinand Marcos Jr. to be “insufficient in substance”.

Some House panel members find allegations in first Marcos impeachment complaint 'insufficient in substance'

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Some House panel members find allegations in first Marcos impeachment complaint 'insufficient in substance'

Vivienne Gulla,

ABS-CBN News

Published February 03, 2026 06:45 PM PHT

Read More:

House of Representatives

House Committee on Justice

Ferdinand Marcos Jr.

Impeachment

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