1 month ago
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CEBU CITY — Gubernatorial candidate Pamela Baricuatro has urged the Cebuanos to hold accountable the nine Cebu representatives who supported the impeachment complaint against Vice President Sara Duterte, calling their actions a betrayal of public trust.
Baricuatro, who is challenging incumbent Cebu Gov. Gwendolyn Garcia, accused the lawmakers of allegedly disregarding the will of their constituents and failing to consider the negative consequences of their decision.
"Remember these Congress representatives. Do not forget their irresponsible actions against the people," said Baricuatro.
In an interview with The Manila Times, she criticized the lawmakers for aggressively pushing the impeachment of Duterte, who was elected by over 32 million Filipinos.
She argued that the signatures of nine legislators did not reflect the sentiments of Cebu's more than 1.5 million registered voters.
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"They have broken the unity of the people through their aggressive push for the impeachment of VP Sara Duterte," she stressed.
In the 2022 presidential elections, Marcos won in Cebu with approximately 1,515,812 votes, while Sara Duterte received 1,772,999 votes in Cebu province.
In Cebu City alone, Marcos received 325,060 votes, and Duterte secured 360,428 votes.
Baricuatro, a staunch Duterte ally, has led multiple political rallies backing the Duterte family. She is now running for Cebu governor against Garcia, who has pledged allegiance to President Ferdinand Marcos Jr.
Garcia's daughter, Christina Garcia Frasco, leads the Department of Tourism under the Marcos administration.
On Feb. 5, the House of Representatives voted to impeach Duterte, with 215 legislators endorsing the complaint.
The Cebu representatives who signed the complaint were Eduardo Rama (Cebu City, second district), Ma. Cynthia Chan (Lapu-Lapu City, Lone District) and Emmarie Ouano-Dizon (Mandaue City, Lone District).
Other signatories from Cebu province included Rhea Gullas (first district), Edsel Galeos (second district), Janice Salimbangon (fourth district), Duke Frasco (fifth district), Daphne Lagon (sixth district) and Peter John Calderon (seventh district).
Cebu City 1st District Rep. Cutie del Mar and Cebu 3rd District Rep. Pablo John Garcia did not sign the complaint.
The impeachment case has been transmitted to the Senate, which will act as the impeachment tribunal.
Meanwhile, former Cebu City mayor Michael Rama, a known Duterte ally, also criticized the impeachment, calling it unnecessary and urging the government to focus on more pressing national concerns.
Duterte, widely regarded as a strong contender for the 2028 presidential elections, has been hit with multiple impeachment complaints from lawmakers and activist groups.
She is accused of culpable violation of the Constitution, bribery, graft and corruption, betrayal of public trust and other serious offenses, in-cluding the alleged misuse of confidential funds from her office and the Department of Education.
