SENATE President Sherwin Gatchalian and impeachment court presiding officer Sen. Francis Escudero on Tuesday night thanked the House prosecution for its decision to shorten the presentation of evidence against Vice President Sara Duterte on Impeachment Article 4.
Article 4 charges the Vice President with grave threats and inciting sedition in relation to the assassination threats she made against President Ferdinand Marcos Jr., First Lady Liza Araneta Marcos and former Speaker Ferdinand Martin G. Romualdez.
Gatchalian’s and Escudero’s statements of appreciation followed the prosecution’s manifestation, made through private counsel Lorna Kapunan, that it was no longer calling witnesses Zuleika Lopez, chief of staff of the Office of the Vice President, and Belinda Bello of the House of Representatives legislative security bureau.
Welcoming the manifestation, Gatchalian said based on the opposing parties’ pre-trial submissions, a total of 102 witnesses are to be called – 57 for the prosecution and 45 for the defense.
“At the rate we are going—two witnesses per day—we will finish in 17 months. That’s a year and a half or a year and five months to be exact,” he said.
“So any chance of shortening the proceedings will be highly appreciated,” he said.
Sharing Gatchalian’s expression of appreciation for the prosecution’s decision to dispense with Lopez and Bello, Escudero said, “The presiding officer also thanks the counsel for prosecutors.”
The prosecution informed the impeachment court of its decision on the fourth day of the trial, when the defense ended its two-day cross-examination of NBI regional director Jeremy Lotoc.
Lotoc and NBI Agent John Mark Calilung are witnesses on Article of Impeachment 4, on which the impeachment court has given the prosecution 11 trial days to present its evidence against the vice president.
Kapunan told the impeachment court that the statements of Lopez and Bello that would potentially corroborate the testimonies of Lotoc and Calilung have already been covered by declarations and evidence presented by the two NBI officers during the first four day of trial.
She said in the interest of time, the prosecution was therefore no longer calling Lopez and Bello to the witness stand.
She urged the defense to make a similar gesture.
Calilung authenticated the video recording of the Nov. 23, 2024 online press conference of the Vice President, during which she threatened to have President Marcos, his wife and then Speaker Romualdez assassinated if she herself were killed.
She claimed she has talked to a person to carry out her threats, and that the unidentified individual said yes.
Lotoc, who headed a team that investigated the threats, told senator-judges they were “serious, real and actual,” and that the Vice President was capable of carrying them out.
The prosecution intends to strengthen its evidence on Impeachment Article 4 with the testimony on Monday of NBI Director Melvin Matibag.
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