Palace confident Marcos has votes to thwart ouster

MALACANANG is confident President Ferdinand R. Marcos, Jr. will have enough support in the House of Representatives to stop any impeachment bid from advancing, while stressing that the chief executive will respect any move by lawmakers to revive impeachment efforts against Vice-President Sara Duterte-Carpio.

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Palace Press Officer Clarissa A. Castro said there is, so far, no impeachment complaint filed against Mr. Marcos, dismissing talk of an ouster bid as premature and speculative.

“There is no complaint yet, so how can the President prepare?” she told a news briefing in Filipino. “If there is one, it will be read and addressed accordingly.”

Ms. Castro said Malacañang is ready to review any complaint should one be formally lodged, adding that the President respects constitutional processes and the separation of powers.

She said reports of an impeachment move stem from efforts by supporters of the Vice-President, citing remarks by a lawmaker who said groups linked to the Duterte camp were seeking to build a case against Mr. Marcos. Ms. Castro did not name the lawmakers involved.

House Senior Deputy Minority Leader Edgar R. Erice on Sunday said the President could face an impeachment complaint anchored on betrayal of public trust, particularly over the administration’s handling of a multi-billion-peso corruption scandal involving flood control projects.

He said a group approached him last week to seek his endorsement for such a complaint, which he declined.