House sees longer impeachment trial

THE House prosecution panel on Monday said the Senate’s impeachment calendar might not provide enough time to complete the trial of Vice-President Sara Duterte-Carpio, after requesting 62 trial dates for the presentation of evidence and witnesses.

House legal spokesman and private prosecutor Benjamin S. Tolosa, Jr. said the prosecution’s proposed schedule reflects the volume of witnesses and documentary evidence identified in its pre-trial brief.

“The prosecution asked for 62 trial dates and the defense asked for 30,” Mr. Tolosa told reporters at the Senate.

Batangas Rep. Gerville R. Luistro, the lead prosecutor, said the proceedings might extend beyond September if both sides present all their witnesses and exhibits.

“If I consider the number of witnesses and exhibits of both parties, it seems it will not be enough to finish by September,” she said in mixed English and Filipino. “Nevertheless, the number of trial days for both the prosecution and the defense is subject to the discretion of the impeachment court.”

Mr. Tolosa clarified that the request does not mean the trial would necessarily last 62 days, noting that the impeachment court could shorten the proceedings by hearing more witnesses in a single day.

He also noted that the defense listed more witnesses despite seeking only 30 trial dates.

“Maybe it is an indication that there’s really no intention to produce all of those witnesses, but of course, we don’t want to preempt what actions they would want to do,” he said.

The prosecution also denied claims circulating on social media that the defense had gained the upper hand during the June 18 pre-trial conference.

“That is not true,” Ms. Luistro said, urging the public to be cautious in evaluating information shared online. “I charge it to fake news.”

At a separate briefing, Party-list Rep. Renee Louise M. Co, a prosecution spokesperson, said the House panel had asked the defense to provide more specific descriptions of several witnesses listed in its pre-trial brief.

“To clarify, this comment seeks to expedite the process of the pre-trial conference,” Ms. Co said. “The point of the comment is to avoid delays and honor the process.”

She added that many witness descriptions were “very general,” making it difficult to determine their intended testimony.

“What we want to protect here is the time of the impeachment court. We don’t want further delay and we want to honor the process and the practices of the court,” she said.

Despite the concerns over the schedule, Senate Secretary Renato N. Bantug, Jr. said the proceedings remain on track for the July 6 trial.

He said about 4,000 documents covering the remaining two articles of impeachment — alleged misuse of confidential funds and unexplained wealth — still need to be marked.

“I was very hopeful that we could finish today,” Mr. Bantug told reporters. “But I just checked the ongoing marking. It’s clear to me that we cannot finish today.”

Michael T. Poa, Ms. Duterte’s lead counsel, said the marking of evidence could extend until Thursday because of the volume of documents, although both sides are trying to speed up the process.

The Senate is scheduled to sit as an impeachment court from July 6 through the period leading up to President Ferdinand R. Marcos, Jr.’s fifth State of the Nation Address on July 27.

Senate President Sherwin T. Gatchalian remains the designated presiding officer under the impeachment rules, although discussions on appointing a lawyer-senator to the role are continuing. — Pexcel John Bacon and Kaela Patricia B. Gabriel