HOUSE impeachment trial spokespersons Zia Alonto Adiong of Lanao del Sur and Atty. Benjamin S. Tolosa Jr. announced on Friday that a psychiatrist has been listed among the prosecution’s reserved witnesses for Article 4 of the complaint.
The expert will be called to provide an objective, professional assessment of the alleged threats made by Vice President Sara Duterte, helping the court determine whether the statements were serious or merely casual remarks.
According to Tolosa, the psychiatrist’s testimony will focus on the charge of grave threats and will help establish the true nature and intent behind the utterances. “It could establish a lot of things — among them, that the threats were made seriously and not in jest,” he explained during a Zoom press conference. The expert’s input may also clarify whether the statements were intended to intimidate or produce fear among those they referred to.
Alonto Adiong emphasized that the psychiatrist will serve as a neutral, nonpartisan resource to assist the Senate impeachment court. He noted that the defense has argued the remarks were figures of speech, conditional statements, or impulsive words spoken in the heat of the moment. The prosecution believes a qualified professional can offer a clear, unbiased analysis to counter that claim.
The assessment will be limited to evaluating the seriousness and intent of the alleged threats directed against President Ferdinand R. Marcos Jr., First Lady Liza Araneta‑Marcos, and former Speaker Ferdinand Martin G. Romualdez. The prosecution clarified that the expert is being brought in to provide factual context, not to introduce political considerations, and to help the court properly interpret the statements in question.
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