By Cliff Potts, Editor-in-Chief, WPS News
BAYBAY CITY, LEYTE, Philippines, September 6, 2026 — 1235 PHST

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Reporting

Vice President Sara Duterte posted bail Saturday after a Quezon City court issued an arrest order in a grave threats case tied to her 2024 remarks involving President Ferdinand Marcos Jr., First Lady Liza Araneta Marcos, and former House Speaker Martin Romualdez.

Reuters reported that the arrest order involved three counts of grave threats, with bail set at ₱120,000 per count, or ₱360,000 total. The case stems from Duterte’s November 2024 online remarks, in which she allegedly said she had instructed an assassin to kill Marcos, the First Lady, and Romualdez if she herself were killed (Reuters, 2026a).

Duterte denies making criminal threats and has described the case as harassment. The Associated Press reported that Duterte’s lawyers handled the bail process and that the vice president remains defiant as the criminal case proceeds alongside the Senate impeachment trial (Associated Press, 2026).

Connection to the Impeachment Trial

The grave threats case is separate from the impeachment trial, but it is connected to one of the impeachment articles against Duterte.

The alleged threat remarks were already part of the Senate impeachment case. They are now also part of a criminal proceeding before the regular courts. An arrest order and bail are not a conviction. They mean the criminal case has moved forward procedurally.

Inside the Senate impeachment court, the main evidentiary focus remains Article I: the alleged misuse of confidential funds from the Office of the Vice President and the Department of Education.

Recent testimony has focused on the DepEd portion of the confidential-funds allegations. The Philippine Daily Inquirer reported that Michael Poa, Duterte’s former DepEd spokesperson, chief of staff, and finance undersecretary, acknowledged that he could face liability if Duterte is found guilty in connection with the alleged misuse of confidential funds. Poa also said he had no personal knowledge of how the funds were actually used (Inquirer.net, 2026a).

In a separate report, Inquirer said Poa testified that not a single peso of DepEd confidential funds went to military youth leadership summits in 2023, despite those activities being discussed in connection with the department’s confidential-fund justification (Inquirer.net, 2026b).

Political Analysis

The latest developments widen Duterte’s legal and political battlefield. She is now facing the Senate impeachment process while also responding to a criminal grave threats case based on the same public remarks that prosecutors previously used in the impeachment proceeding.

That does not prove the impeachment case, and it does not prove the criminal case. But it does increase the pressure around Duterte at a time when the Senate trial is already moving through the confidential-funds evidence.

The political stakes remain obvious. Duterte is still a major national political figure and a likely 2028 presidential contender. Her supporters are likely to see the criminal case as harassment and political pressure. Her critics are likely to see it as accountability catching up with public threats and disputed fund handling.

For WPS News, the clean read is this: the impeachment trial has not ended, collapsed, or been dismissed. The Senate remains focused on the money trail, while the grave threats issue has now moved into a separate criminal proceeding. The case against Duterte is no longer confined to the impeachment court.


APA-Style Source List:

Associated Press. (2026, September 5). Philippines Vice President Duterte posts bail after arrest order for alleged threats against Marcos.

Inquirer.net. (2026a, September 3). Poa admits he also faces liability if VP found guilty.

Inquirer.net. (2026b, September 2). “Not a single peso” in DepEd secret budget went to youth summits — Poa.

Reuters. (2026a, September 5). Philippine VP Duterte posts bail after arrest order for alleged grave threats.

Reuters. (2026b, September 4). Philippine court issues warrant for VP Duterte’s arrest in grave threats case.

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