MANILA, Philippines — Prosecutors will mark more than 1,800 documents, including bank and insurance records obtained through court-issued subpoenas, as they prepare to present the unexplained-wealth allegations against Vice President Sara Duterte in her impeachment trial, lead prosecutor Rep. Chel Diokno said Tuesday.
The Senate impeachment court scheduled the document marking for Wednesday and Thursday, Sept. 9 and 10. The proceedings will pause during the two-day activity and resume Monday, Sept. 14.
Diokno told the court that prosecutors need the additional time to organize and mark the records they plan to use for the second impeachment article.
“I am referring, Your Honor, to the bank records and other insurance records,” Diokno said.
The large volume of documents prompted the prosecution to request more time for the marking process. Diokno initially sought the entire Wednesday session and raised the possibility of extending the activity through Thursday and Friday.
Presiding Officer Francis Escudero instead scheduled the marking sessions for Wednesday and Thursday, starting at 10 a.m. He said the Senate could use Friday for budget deliberations as it handles its legislative duties alongside the impeachment trial.
The defense agreed with the schedule but raised concerns about the time available to review the documents before the trial resumes Monday.
Defense counsel Michael Poa asked the court to give the defense at least two weeks to study the records. He offered to surrender an equivalent amount of time from the defense’s presentation to offset the additional preparation period.
Escudero kept the Sept. 14 hearing date and suggested that the defense could manage its cross-examinations more flexibly. Under his proposal, prosecutors could present the direct testimony of a succeeding witness before the defense conducts cross-examination of an earlier witness.
The document preparation also came as prosecutors filed a 104-item request for admission.
Poa said the defense received the request Tuesday and had not yet had enough time to review it. He asked the court to give the defense at least 15 days to respond, citing Rule 26, Section 2 of the Rules of Court, instead of the seven-day period proposed by the prosecution.
Escudero said the court would determine the appropriate response period.
Diokno also told the court that prosecutors would submit their subpoena requests and notices identifying witnesses for the following week within Tuesday or Wednesday morning.
Escudero directed the prosecution to provide the witness information by Wednesday, along with any proposed stipulations.
The court also reiterated the parties’ pretrial agreement requiring five days’ notice before presenting witnesses.
The arrangements will allow the prosecution to organize the financial records while preparing its presentation on the second impeachment article when the trial resumes Sept. 14.
