Where was Sara Duterte during House impeachment deliberations?

CEBU, Philippines – Vice President Sara Duterte snubbed all the hearings of the House committee on justice on the impeachment complaints against her, and was also not in town when she made history as the first Philippine official to be impeached twice.

Where was the Vice President when this was all happening? Rappler retraces where she went or what she did during the House panel’s hearings.

March 25, 2026

On March 25, the House of Representatives entered the hearing proper stage on the impeachment complaints against the Vice President.

The hearing’s agenda included a discussion on impeachment ground rules, the action on pending motions and requests for subpoena, the determination of the schedule of the next hearings, and determination of resource speakers and witnesses for the April 14 public hearing.

Duterte, in her verified answer to the impeachment complaints, questioned the authority of the panel to hear the case. She called the “a fishing expedition.”

As the House panel kicked off the hearing proper on her impeachment complaints, Duterte keynoted the commencement exercises of the John Paul Benedict School in Meycauayan, Bulacan.

April 14, 2026

The House justice committee conducted its second hearing on the impeachment complaints against Duterte on April 14. During the hearing, the Vice President’s alleged former bagman, Ramil Madriaga, claimed that he had helped Duterte dispose of P125 million in confidential funds within a single day in December 2022, among other scathing allegations against the Vice President and members of her family.

Duterte was again a no-show at the House hearing. Based on photos shared by family members, she was in Davao City to celebrate the birthday of their mother, Elizabeth Zimmerman.

April 22, 2026

For its third public hearing on April 22, the House justice committee tackled the alleged unexplained wealth of the Vice President.

Duterte’s seat at the hearing room was again vacant. It was not known where the Vice President was at the time but she had a couple of posts on her Facebook page, including a public advisory not to believe social media posts that her office was giving out gifts.

At the April 22 hearing, former senator Antonio “Sonny” Trillanes IV linked her to alleged drug lord Samuel “Sammy” Uy, whom he claimed gave over P100 million in payouts to Duterte and her family. The Anti-Money Laundering Council (AMLC) confirmed during the hearing that she was the beneficiary of check transactions worth P14 million made by Uy and his associates.

In this hearing, lawmakers discovered that P6.77 billion in large and suspicious transactions flowed through the bank accounts of Duterte and her husband, Mans Carpio, from 2006 to 2025 — amounts that did not match with those declared by Duterte in her Statements of Assets, Liabilities, and Net Worth (SALN).

It was on this day that Malacañang confirmed that the Vice President sought the issuance of a travel authority to go abroad from April 23 to May 15. On April 23, Duterte said in an official statement posted on her Facebook page, that “plans have changed” regarding her overseas trip due to uncertainty as to whether she would be permitted to depart the country.

April 29, 2026

After deliberation and discussion on the pieces of evidence, including but not limited to Duterte’s bank transaction records, the hearing ended with 53 lawmakers unanimously voting in favor of declaring that probable cause exists to impeach Duterte.

During the hearing, a panel member informed the committee that she received information that Duterte was at a mall in San Pedro, Laguna. Duterte’s Facebook page posted photos of her attendance at the “Extra+Ordinary: The Vice Presidents of the Philippines” pop-up exhibit in Robinsons Galleria South in San Pedro City.

May 4, 2026

The House justice committee approved its report that finalizes the impeachment case against Duterte on May 4. Here, 55 lawmakers voted in favor of the report, with no objections.

News outlets reported that, on the same day, the Vice President was seen with supporters at The Hague in the Netherlands, where her father, former president Rodrigo Duterte, is detained for crimes against humanity charges.

May 11, 2026

On the day 257 lawmakers voted to impeach Duterte, the Vice President, in a Facebook post, reminisced about her April visit to the National Museum of the Philippines-Cordillera (Ifugao Museum) in Kiangan town, Ifugao.

Duterte was still in the Hague during this time, based on interview videos retrieved from the OVP.

The Vice President earlier said that she would face trial at the Senate, which will convene as an impeachment court. On the day of her impeachment, the Senate changed leadership, installing Alan Peter Cayetano, a staunch Duterte supporter and ally, as Senate president. – Rappler.com