MANILA, Philippines — A private prosecutor in Vice President Sara Duterte’s impeachment case on Wednesday disputed allegations by the defense panel that House prosecutors have been absent during the Senate impeachment court’s pretrial conference, saying records show their regular participation in the proceedings.
Lawyer Jay Tolosa, a member and spokesperson of the private prosecution team, addressed the issue during an online interview after defense spokesperson Michael Poa claimed that public prosecutors and House lawmakers assigned to the impeachment proceedings were not consistently attending the pretrial conference.
Tolosa said prosecutors have attended the evidence-marking sessions since the pretrial conference began and noted that photos and videos document their presence.
“We have to state for the record that we don’t appreciate the fact that there’s a member of the defense team spreading lies about what’s actually going on in this pretrial conference, including the pre-marking of evidence,” Tolosa said.
Poa said Tuesday that the defense team has enough personnel to handle the evidence-marking process and argued that prosecutors, not the defense, have contributed to delays by leaving before the end of the sessions.
His remarks came after lead prosecutor and Batangas Rep. Gerville Luistro said the pretrial conference could extend beyond Thursday because of the volume of documents involved, including about 4,000 documents related to allegations of confidential fund misuse under Article I of the Articles of Impeachment.
Luistro also cited the defense panel’s staffing limitations and its refusal to consolidate the marking of common evidence as factors contributing to the delay.
Tolosa rejected Poa’s claim and said the defense itself previously acknowledged having insufficient personnel for the evidence-marking process.
“That issue — that they didn’t have enough personnel — came from the defense last Monday,” Tolosa said.
He added that prosecutors continue to participate in the proceedings and have enough personnel to maximize the additional evidence-marking teams authorized by the impeachment court.
Tolosa declined to speculate on the defense team’s motives and said the prosecution remains focused on completing the pretrial process so the trial can begin as scheduled.
Earlier, Tolosa and Mamamayang Liberal party-list Rep. Leila de Lima confirmed that the Senate impeachment court approved requests to add more evidence-marking teams and extend working hours.
Under the revised arrangement, four teams will handle documents related to Article I, which concerns Duterte’s alleged misuse of confidential funds, while two teams will review documents related to Article II, which covers allegations of unexplained wealth.
The Senate impeachment court began the pretrial conference on June 18 after issuing a notice to both parties on June 9.
The pretrial conference aims to address stipulations of facts, evidence marking, witness identification, trial scheduling, the order of presenting evidence, and other matters intended to facilitate a fair and expeditious trial.
Despite the extended proceedings, members of the prosecution panel said they remain on track to begin the trial on July 6.
The House of Representatives impeached Duterte on May 11 after 257 lawmakers voted to adopt the Articles of Impeachment. The complaint includes allegations involving the misuse of confidential funds, unexplained wealth, bribery of Department of Education officials, and threats against President Ferdinand Marcos Jr., First Lady Liza Araneta-Marcos, and former House Speaker Martin Romualdez.
