MANILA, Philippines — The Senate impeachment court approved the proposed 92 trial days for Vice President Sara Duterte’s impeachment trial and allowed the prosecution and defense to present 17 common witnesses, according to a pretrial order issued Monday.
The 15-page pretrial order, which Senate President Sherwin Gatchalian signed, allotted 62 trial days for the prosecution and 30 for the defense.
“The proposed number of trial dates is 62 for the prosecution and 30 for the respondents,” the order stated.
The impeachment trial will begin on July 6 at 2 p.m. and will continue every Monday, Tuesday and Wednesday until July 27. The court will then hold trial sessions at 3 p.m. every Tuesday, Wednesday and Thursday until the proceedings conclude.
Duterte faces four articles of impeachment. Article I accuses her of misusing up to P612.5 million in confidential funds allocated to the Office of the Vice President and the Department of Education from late 2022 to 2023. Article II alleges she accumulated unexplained wealth disproportionate to her income and failed to disclose all her assets. Article III accuses her of bribery and corruption through monetary gifts and secret payments to Department of Education officials during her tenure as education secretary. Article IV alleges she publicly disclosed that she had contracted a hitman to kill President Ferdinand Marcos Jr., First Lady Liza Araneta-Marcos and former House Speaker Martin Romualdez.
The court allotted 31 trial days for the prosecution to present evidence on the alleged misuse of confidential funds under Article I. It also set aside 12 trial days for Article II on alleged unexplained wealth, 11 trial days for Article IV on the alleged assassination plot and related charges, and eight trial days for Article III on the alleged bribery and corruption involving the Department of Education.
The prosecution reserved the right to present additional or substitute witnesses if necessary.
The prosecution listed 57 witnesses, while the defense identified 45. Both sides listed 17 common witnesses, including Ramil Madriaga, former Sen. Antonio Trillanes IV, Melvin Matibag, Jesus Crispin Remulla and Ronel Buenaventura.
The Senate impeachment court furnished both parties with copies of the pretrial order on Monday and directed them to review the document within three calendar days. The order states that the court will no longer allow corrections after that period.
