Metro Manila, Philippines – A member of the House prosecution team claimed having ‘scored’ points on the second day of the impeachment trial of Vice President Sara Duterte in presenting the first witness, as well as the video showing the supposed threats against the president and members of his family.
“Score kami sa video na lumabas na dapat makita ng Senate Impeachment Court. Score kami sa ibang statements pa na lumabas galing sa bise presidente na sumusuporta sa articles of impeachment,” said House prosecutor and Iloilo Rep. Lorenz Defensor at a press briefing after the trial on Tuesday, July 7.
[Translation: We scored points with the video that was presented because it’s something the Senate Impeachment Court should see. We also scored on the other statements made by the vice president, as they support the articles of impeachment.]
The lawmaker is the lead prosecutor on the impeachment article on supposed grave threats against President Ferdinand Marcos Jr.
He, however, did not examine National Bureau of Investigation (NBI) senior agent John Mark Calilung in Tuesday’s proceedings, with private prosecutor Amando Ligutan taking on the task.
READ: Impeachment Court begins tackling Sara Duterte’s alleged threats vs. Marcos
Defensor said the Impeachment Court acted with impartiality, fairness, and integrity during the proceedings.
In a press briefing, prosecution spokesperson and Lanao del Sur Rep. Zia Adiong also claimed victory, citing multiple objections of the defense team that were overruled by the court.
“Nakita rin natin kung ano ang strategy ng defense is actually to mute the evidence or do anything that they can technically not to allow the court to appreciate the evidence,” he said.
[Translation: We also saw the strategy of the defense. It’s actually to mute the evidence or do anything they can technically to disallow the court from appreciating the evidence.]
Overruled objections
Court presiding officer and senator Chiz Escudero rejected multiple objections of the defense.
Among them was the opposition of lawyer CJ Narvasa to presenting a shorter version of the video of Duterte’s press briefing in November 2024 where she said she contracted a person to kill Marcos, First Lady Liza Araneta, and former House Speaker Martin Romualdez — if something happens to her.
The prosecution made the move as it asked Calilung to identify certain parts of the briefing, which the NBI found relevant in its independent probe.
“Prosecution cannot be allowed to present a small, truncated part of a whole 2 hour 26 minute video. That will not provide the context necessary for the understanding of what occurred during that night of November 23,” said Narvasa.
Escudero denied the motion, saying the defense will be allowed to present the entire clip if they wish to do so, when it is their turn to present evidence.
Prior to that, the presiding officer also overruled defense objections on the authenticity of a document presented by Ligutan. It showed that Meta, the parent company of Facebook, acknowledged the NBI request to preserve the video recording.
Ahead of Calilung’s testimony, Escudero rejected Narvasa’s attempt to exclude Calilung from the witness list for not being included in the original impeachment complaint and the Articles of Impeachment.
“The court in general will not shackle the prosecution by limiting it to the evidence mentioned in the information and/or the Articles especially when it is mentioned in the pre-trial brief,” he said, while citing the case of Enrile vs. Sandiganbayan as the Supreme Court held that additional evidence may be allowed during pre-trial stage even if it is not stated in the complaint.
At the start of the proceedings, Narvasa also quickly objected to the manifestation speech of Defensor, saying it is “improper for court procedure.”
Escudero allowed the prosecutor to proceed after Defensor argued that impeachment is sui generis or a class by itself.
‘Not counting wins or losses’
In a press briefing after the trial, defense lawyer and spokesperson Michael Poa said the Duterte camp does not mind overruled objections as it only wants its positions on record.
“The defense feels it’s really important to put matters on record especially because, as you know, during our answer we have raised issues kaya meron tayong motion for exclusion for certain document we feel kasi should not be considered dahil di naman sya naka-attach sa original complaint, others naman di saklaw ng years kung saan impeachable ang ating bise presidente,” he said.
[Translation: The defense believes it is very important to put these matters on the record, especially because, as you know, in our answer we raised several issues. That is why we had a motion for exclusion of certain documents. We believe those documents should not be considered because they were not attached to the original complaint. As for the others, they fall outside the impeachable years of the vice president.]
Poa added that the defense does not count wins or losses daily, saying it is too early to make a conclusion when the trial is only on its second day.
The Impeachment Court scheduled the defense’s cross examination of Calilung at 2 p.m. on Wednesday, July 8.
Court spokesperson Regie Tongol explained that senator-judges agreed to hold the cross examination tomorrow as it is expected to take a long time.
