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Manila Bulletin devider Philippines devider National devider House prosecution team '80% ready' for VP Duterte impeachment trial--Defensor

House prosecution team '80% ready' for VP Duterte impeachment trial--Defensor

Published Apr 2, 2025 09:30 am

At A Glance

  • Iloilo 3rd district Rep. Lorenz Defensor says the House prosecution team in Vice President Sara Duterte's upcoming Senate impeachment trial is now 80 percent ready for the proceedings. 
  • The impeachment trial won't begin until after President Marcos delivers his fourth State of the Nation Address (SONA) in July 2025.

20250402_162337.jpgVice President Sara Duterte (left), Iloilo 3rd district Rep. Lorenz Defensor (Facebook, PPAB)

The House prosecution team in Vice President Sara Duterte’s upcoming Senate impeachment trial is now 80 percent ready for the proceedings.

This was bared by Iloilo 3rd district Rep. Lorenz Defensor on Wednesday, April 2 even as the impeached Vice President remained in the Netherlands.

"[We're] 80 percent ready. We are just preparing and anticipating what the possible defenses would be by the defense council and we'll have time to meet this week with the other articles how far they have gone," said Defensor, who is among the more senior members of the 11-strong prosecution team.

The solon-prosecutors still have plenty of time to polish their strategies as the impeachment trial won't begin until after President Marcos delivers his fourth State of the Nation Address (SONA) in July 2025.

Vice President Duterte is serving as spokesperson for her father, former president Rodrigo Duterte, who is being detained and tried by the International Criminal Court (ICC) at The Hague in the Netherlands for crimes against humanity.

Although the House prosecutors have been meeting on a "per article" basis to be more familiar with article assignments, Defensor said that all of them are still expected to master all seven articles of impeachment.

"All of us should be on board, on all articles of impeachment," he said.

The seven articles of impeachment against Duterte are as follows:

Article 1: Conspiracy to assassinate President Marcos, First Lady Liza Araneta-Marcos, and Speaker Martin Romualdez;

Article 2: Malversation of P612.5 million in confidential funds;

Article 3: Bribery and corruption in Department of Education (DepEd);

Article 4: Unexplained wealth and failure to disclose assets;

Article 5: Involvement in extrajudicial killings (EJK);

Article 6: Destabilization, insurrection, and public disorder; and

Article 7: The totality of respondent's conduct as Vice President.

The solon-prosecutors have also recently conducted a mock trial.

Related Tags

Impeachment Sara Duterte lorenz defensor Articles of Impeachment Rodrigo Duterte
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