MANILA, Philippines — The recently filed impeachment complaints against several high-ranking government officials face a significant procedural hurdle, as House leaders clarified on Sunday, January 25, 2026, that the petitions cannot move forward without the formal endorsement of at least one member of the House of Representatives.
The statement follows a tense week where multi-sectoral groups attempted to file raps at the House Secretary General’s office, only to be met with administrative resistance.
The Constitutional Requirement Under the 1987 Constitution and the Rules of Procedure in Impeachment Cases, a complaint filed by a private citizen must be accompanied by an endorsement from a House member to be considered “officially initiated.”
- The Process: Once a complaint is endorsed, it is referred to the House Committee on Rules and then to the Committee on Justice, which determines if the complaint is sufficient in form and substance.
- Current Status: As of Sunday, none of the newly submitted complaints have secured a signature from a sitting representative, leaving them in a state of “administrative limbo.”
House Leadership’s Stance House leaders maintained that the requirement for an endorsement is a necessary safeguard against “nuisance” filings that could distract the legislature from its primary duties. “The law is clear. We cannot process these complaints as if they are regular bills. There is a specific gatekeeping mechanism that requires a member of this chamber to take responsibility for the allegations by signing the endorsement,” a ranking House official stated.
The Minority’s Dilemma While members of the Makabayan bloc and other minority lawmakers have expressed support for the grievances raised by the petitioners, they have yet to formally sign the documents.
- Tactical Delays: Some lawmakers suggested that they are still “carefully vetting” the evidence provided by the groups to ensure the complaints can withstand the scrutiny of the Committee on Justice.
- Political Pressure: Critics of the administration argue that the difficulty in finding an endorser reflects a “chilling effect” within the chamber, where lawmakers are hesitant to challenge top officials due to the current political climate.
What’s Next for the Petitioners? The groups behind the impeachment bids, including various civil society and labor organizations, have vowed to continue lobbying House members. They argue that the refusal of the House Secretariat to even “receive” the documents for the record—regardless of the endorsement—is a violation of their right to petition the government.
Legal experts suggest that if no lawmaker steps forward in the coming weeks, the complaints will effectively expire, as the House cannot act on them motu proprio (on its own) without the trigger of a formal endorsement.