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Twenty-nine-year-old senior high school teacher Barry Tayam after filing a petition for declaratory relief before the Supreme Court on March 3, 2025.
The STAR / Evelyn Macarian
MANILA, Philippines — A senior high school teacher filed a petition before the Supreme Court on Monday, March 3, seeking to “address specific constitutional questions and concerns” regarding the impeachment of Vice President Sara Duterte.
Barry Tayam, 29, filed a petition for declaratory relief before the high court, requesting an interpretation of the constitutional provision on when the Senate should convene as an impeachment court after the House of Representatives transmits the articles of impeachment.
Tayam said he filed the plea due to the varying interpretations from lawmakers and legal experts on the impeachment process.
“The petitioner further requests that the Honorable Supreme Court address the specific constitutional questions and concerns raised herein, and provide clarity on the proper course of action in accordance with the Constitution and established legal principles that will uphold the constitutional rights and safeguard the rule of law,” a portion of Tayam’s petition read.
A declaratory relief under the Rules of Court is a legal remedy that allows a party to request the court to clarify their rights, duties, or obligations under a contract, statute, or regulation.
This type of relief is intended to resolve legal uncertainties without requiring coercive action or the awarding of damages.
Other petitions. Tayam’s plea is the fourth petition filed before the Supreme Court concerning Duterte’s impeachment.
The first was filed on February 15 by lawyer Catalino Generillo Jr., a former special counsel for the Presidential Commission on Good Government, who submitted a petition for mandamus asking the high court to compel the Senate to immediately convene as an impeachment tribunal.
Duterte herself filed a petition on February 18 challenging the validity of her impeachment. On the same day, a group of Mindanaoan lawyers also filed a petition questioning the impeachment complaints.
On February 25, the Supreme Court directed the House of Representatives, the Senate and House Secretary General Reginald Velasco to submit their responses to the petitions, as they were named respondents in the case.
Duterte’s former spokesperson, lawyer Michael Poa, also petitioned the Supreme Court to allow him to join the vice president’s legal team in challenging her impeachment.
What happened earlier. On Feb. 5, 2025, 215 members of the House of Representatives voted to proceed with Duterte’s impeachment.
The articles of impeachment cite allegations of misusing confidential funds and issuing death threats against President Ferdinand Marcos Jr.
