The Philippine Supreme Court’s chief justice — who has drawn the ire of President Rodrigo Duterte — expects to be impeached by the House next month and will go on leave to prepare for the trial she’s confident of winning, her spokesman said.
International rights groups and local critics have accused Duterte of drifting toward authoritarianism after declaring martial law in the south. He has overseen a drug war marked by thousands of killings of mostly poor suspects and has publicly threatened his opponents.
Last year, he said he wanted Chief Justice Maria Lourdes Sereno and a top anti-graft prosecutor impeached and accused them of allowing themselves to be used to discredit his administration.
Sereno will start an indefinite leave today but will not resign amid reports that rival justices demanded she quit in a closed-door meeting, her spokesman Jojo Lacanilao said.
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