House impeach prosecution lines up 25 witnesses

MANILA, Philippines — The House prosecution team is looking to present 25 witnesses, including “hostile witnesses,” in the impeachment trial against Vice President Sara Duterte, lead prosecutor and Batangas Rep. Gerville Luistro said.

Luistro said the witnesses include officials from the Department of Education (DepEd) and the Office of the Vice President who are “very much attached” to Duterte.

“That is why we call them or they are considered, under the rules of evidence, as hostile witnesses. We expect their loyalty to be with the Vice President, and so we need to present as a hostile witness,” she said yesterday over radio dzBB.

Aside from witness testimonies, the prosecution panel will also seek the opening of Duterte’s bank accounts, saying bank documents and testimonies from bank officials were not presented during the House hearings.

“We took the safer, conservative route because we are aware of the confidentiality provisions of the Bank Secrecy Law,” Luistro said, referring to the exception to the absolute confidentiality of bank records in impeachment cases.

She said the prosecution team would move for the issuance of subpoenas to bank officials and documents once the impeachment trial begins.

“We did not have bank documents and bank officials in the House (hearings), but this time, during the impeachment trial, we will be moving for the issuance of subpoena to bank officials and documents,” Luistro said.

“This will be the first time that we will be able to see the bank documents and the bank officials’ testimony, and we are positive that the Senate impeachment court will be considering our motion for the issuance of a subpoena. I believe there are no more debates. There are no more issues because this is already the impeachment trial,” she added.

During the House justice panel hearings, Anti-Money Laundering Council executive director Ronel Buenaventura testified that Duterte and her husband, Manases Carpio, recorded P6.7 billion worth of covered and suspicious bank transactions from 2006 to 2025.

The hearings also revealed that Duterte and Carpio, in their joint statement of assets, liabilities and net worth filings before the ombudsman, declared no cash on hand or cash in bank from 2019 to 2024.

The Articles of Impeachment approved by the House accuse Duterte of culpable violation of the Constitution, graft and corruption, betrayal of public trust, bribery and other high crimes over allegations involving confidential fund misuse, unexplained wealth, bribery and grave threats against top government officials.

Convicting the Vice President, who used to head DepEd, requires at least 16 of the 24 senators sitting as judges. A guilty verdict would remove her from office and permanently disqualify her from holding public office.