MANILA (Reuters) -Philippine senators were sworn in as jurors on Tuesday in the impeachment trial of Vice President Sara Duterte, who faces a lifetime political ban if convicted of high crimes and betraying the public trust.

The House of Representatives voted overwhelmingly in February to impeach Duterte for betrayal of public trust and high crimes, referring the case to the Senate to convene a trial. Duterte insists the impeachment is politically motivated and denies wrongdoing.

Philippine senators have set themselves as an impeachment court for the trial of Vice President Sara Duterte over corruption and other criminal allegations but they voted to send the raft of complaints back to the House of Representatives due to legal questions.