THE House prosecution expects Davao City Mayor Sebastian “Baste” Duterte to attend the impeachment trial of Vice President Sara Z. Duterte this week even without advance confirmation from the mayor because he was subpoenaed by the Senate sitting as an impeachment court.
House prosecution legal spokesperson and private prosecutor Benjamin “Jay” Tolosa Jr. pointed out that the Vice President’s younger brother has no choice but to comply with the compulsory order requiring his attendance.
“Well, wala pa ho tayong natatanggap any information about that. Pero alam lamang ho natin ay nakatanggap na ho siya nung subpoena mula sa court nung nakaraan na linggo na to,” Tolosa told Milky Rigonan’s Isyung Pambayan over radio dzRH.
“Well basta naman ho kasi nakatanggap ng subpoena hindi naman kailangan mag-notify kung sila ay mag-a-appear sa korte o hindi dahil ang assumption dyan yan ho ay compulsory process ng korte ‘yan. Kapag naservan ka ng subpeona kailangan mong tumalima, kailangan mo hong magpakita sa korte at umupo bilang testigo,” he explained.
The impeachment court ordered Mayor Duterte to appear on Sept. 28, 29 and 30 and to bring official Davao City records involving transactions with GenCorp Industries and other specified entities.
“So inaasahan ho natin sana respetuhin ho itong subpoena na ito, talagang magpakita ho dito sa ngayong linggo na ‘to dahil maaalala ho natin as stated dun sa request namin for subpeona kung bakit namin gustong gawing testigo itong si Davao Mayor Baste Duterte,” Tolosa said.
Senate President Sherwin Gatchalian has said that while the impeachment court has contempt powers, it would first hear any reason given should Duterte fail to appear before deciding what action to take.
Mayor Duterte has publicly discussed the Davao City government’s GenCorp transactions but has yet to provide the testimony under oath that the prosecution is seeking before the impeachment court.
The prosecution wants his testimony as part of Article II, which covers allegations involving unexplained wealth, asset declarations and continued business interests during Duterte’s tenure as vice president.
metrosundaily
