Impeachment prosecutors move to expedite marking of documents
MANILA, Philippines — The prosecutors in the impeachment trial of Vice President Sara Duterte are scrambling to expedite the marking of thousands of documentary exhibits linked to her alleged misuse of confidential funds, as having to work on “really voluminous” documents is compounding the task and threatening to derail the start of her impeachment trial on July 6.
At a press briefing yesterday, lead prosecutor Rep. Gerville Luistro and Rep. Joel Chua admitted that their current pace is too slow to meet tomorrow’s deadline for the pre-trial marking of evidence.
“I wish to share that indeed, the documents for confidential fund are really voluminous,” Luistro said.
Currently, four teams are facilitating the marking process – three dedicated to confidential funds and one to unexplained wealth. However, prosecutors are concerned the setup may not be enough.
To keep the trial on track, Chua said they are asking Senate officials to allow additional teams as well as weekend work. The pre-trial conference may have to continue today.
Luistro also said the defense team could have helped conclude the pre-trial conference earlier had it agreed to the prosecutors’ proposal that common exhibits be marked as one.
Luistro said her team’s proposal was meant to prevent duplication of markings and ultimately hasten the process of the pre-trial conference.
“So what happened was separate marking for the prosecution and separate marking for the defense even if they pertain to the same document,” she said in a chance interview on the sidelines of the closed-door pre-trial conference at the Senate.
As of yesterday, 248 of the exhibits of the Duterte’s defense team have been adopted as against the 276 exhibits of the prosecution.
Luistro said the impeachment court will continue the marking of evidence for Articles I and II, which refer to the alleged misuse of confidential funds and accumulation of unexplained wealth, respectively.
Senate Secretary Renato Bantug earlier revealed that Article I alone involves over 4,000 documents submitted by the prosecution and the defense.
Rejected
Defense lawyer and spokesman Michael Poa confirmed their rejection of the prosecution’s request, saying they wanted their own documents to be marked “even if they are similar.”
“They have their documents and we have ours. We’re just being very careful with the way we do things. After all, these are the documents that we’re going to use during the course of the trial,” he said.
Poa also denied the claim that the defense “adopted” exhibits from the prosecution, saying the two parties submitted their pre-trial briefs on the same day.
He said both the defense and the prosecution are working together to expedite the pre-trial and finish the markings as soon as possible.
He also said Senate should resolve the issue on the voting threshold necessary for conviction before the start of the trial on July 6.
In a radio interview, Poa insisted the threshold vote to secure a conviction should be at least 16 of the 24 senators.
“There is no categorical pronouncement from the impeachment court or the Senate sitting as an impeachment court, we are waiting for it but of course we also have a position. I’m sure you can read between the lines what our position is. The Constitution is clear. Right now, we have a position but it’s premature, let’s just wait for the Senate to give a pronouncement but to your question, definitely in my view, that should be discussed immediately rather than in the middle of the discussion or there might be a problem,” Poa said.
No issue with Chiz
Poa also said they have no issue with the possible designation of Sen. Francis Escudero as presiding officer in the impeachment court.
“I think it is an internal matter in the Senate. Now, as long as it is in accordance with the Constitution, we are ready for whoever is appointed as the presiding officer. We believe in the impartiality of everyone, including whoever it may appoint as presiding officer,” he said.
The pre-trial conference started on June 18 and the impeachment court has so far completed the marking of documentary evidence for two of four Articles of Impeachment: Articles III and IV, which cover allegations of bribery in the Department of Education (DepEd) and the death threats on President Marcos, First Lady Liza Araneta-Marcos and former speaker Martin Romualdez.
A defense lawyer, Mark Vinluan, denied claims they are undermanned and thus are partly to blame for the slow progress of the pre-trial conference.
“Maybe Rep. Luistro just didn’t get it because the prosecutors don’t participate the whole day. So they just appear in the morning and then they leave and then they leave the rest of the task to the private prosecutors who are handling the case,” Vinluan said.
Rep. Terry Ridon rejected Vinluan’s claim, saying he was always present for the entire duration of the conference. “It is not a manpower question, it is a volume question, as there are so many papers that need to be signed by three parties – defense, prosecution and Senate clerk of court,” Ridon said.
In an interview over “Storycon” on One News, Ridon also said the prosecution is moving forward with plans to subpoena pertinent bank records. He said the prosecution is preparing a request to compel the submission of financial documents from multiple banks and agencies, including the Anti-Money Laundering Council (AMLC), noting that the impeachment court has broad authority over evidentiary matters.
“All bank transactions of the Duterte couple are something we are prepared to look into. We will ask for subpoenas, and each account will be located,” he said, referring to the Vice President and her spouse, Manases Carpio. — Bella Cariaso, Mark Ernest Villeza
- Latest
- Trending
