House prosecutors have asked the Senate impeachment court to require the defense of Vice President Sara Duterte to provide more specific explanations on the purpose and relevance of each witness and document listed in its pre-trial submission, citing the need for clearer organization ahead of trial proceedings.
In a pleading submitted to the court, the prosecution panel said it noted that a significant number of defense witnesses and exhibits were described in broadly similar terms, making it difficult to distinguish the specific issues each is expected to address.
According to the prosecutors, many witnesses were generally presented as intended to dispute the allegations in the Articles of Impeachment, support claims in the Vice President’s Answer, or authenticate documents, without further detail on the exact matters to be covered.
A similar approach, they said, was observed in the list of documentary exhibits, which were also described in uniform and generalized language.
Lead prosecutor Batangas Rep. Gerville Luistro said the request is not about limiting the defense’s evidence but ensuring that the court is properly informed of its relevance.
“The issue is whether the court is given enough information to understand what each witness is expected to prove and why each document is relevant,” she said.
The prosecution said greater specificity would help the impeachment court define issues more clearly, avoid duplication of testimony, and streamline the presentation of evidence during trial.
It also stressed that pre-trial proceedings are intended to narrow disputes and clarify what evidence will be presented by both sides once the trial begins.
Without clearer descriptions, the prosecution warned that the court may face difficulty in determining whether multiple witnesses will testify on the same points or whether certain exhibits overlap in purpose.
The prosecution emphasized that it is not seeking the exclusion of any witness or document, but rather a more detailed explanation of their intended relevance.
“The request is fundamentally about clarity,” the Batangas solon said. “If a witness is important to the defense, the court should know what specific issue that witness will address.”
The impeachment trial of Vice President Duterte is set to formally begin on July 6, following ongoing pre-trial proceedings in the Senate sitting as an impeachment court.