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Manila Bulletin devider Philippines devider National devider House prosecution team shares strategy, reveals impeachment article assignments

House prosecution team shares strategy, reveals impeachment article assignments

Published May 19, 2026 06:06 pm

At A Glance

  • The House prosecution panel assigns mini‑teams to handle each of the four articles of impeachment against Vice President Sara Duterte, with specific lawyer‑legislators designated as leads and second leads.
  • Article I and II each have nine prosecutors tackling alleged misuse of confidential funds and unexplained wealth, respectively; while Articles III and IV focus on bribery and threats against top officials, respectively.
  • Lead prosecutor Gerville Luistro also announces Renee Co and Zia Alonto Adiong as trial spokespersons, as the Senate impeachment court issues a writ of summons to Duterte, who has ten days to respond before the trial schedule is set.
Batangas 2nd district Rep. Gerville "Jinky Bitrics" Luistro (PPAB)
Batangas 2nd district Rep. Gerville "Jinky Bitrics" Luistro (PPAB)


How exactly does the 11-member House prosecution panel plan to secure a conviction against impeachment respondent Vice President Sara Duterte?
Answer: By assigning mini-teams to each of the Vice President’s four articles of impeachment, which they would then present to the Senate impeachment court in an attempt to sway the senator-judges.
In a press conference Tuesday afternoon, May 19, lead prosecutor Batangas 2nd district Rep. Gerville "Jinky Bitrics" Luistro revealed what these "article assignments" are.
Nine prosecutors were assigned to Article I, which accuses Duterte of culpable violation of the Constitution, graft and corruption, and betrayal of public trust over the alleged misuse of P500 million in confidential funds of the Office of the Vice President (OVP) and P112.5 million in confidential funds of the Department of Education (DepEd).
Assigned to this article were Luistro as lead, and Manila 3rd district Rep. Joel Chua as second lead. The others tasked with this article were Mamamayang Liberal (ML) Party-list Rep. Leila de Lima, Akbayan Party-list Rep. Chel Diokno, Bicol Saro Party-list Rep. Terry Ridon, Iloilo 3rd Rep. Lorenz Defensor, Bukidnon 2nd district Rep. Jonathan Keith Flores, 1-Rider Party-list Rep. Rodge Gutierrez, and Cagayan de Oro 1st district Rep. Lordan Suan.
Article II also has the same number of prosecutors. The article alleges culpable violation of the Constitution and betrayal of public trust over Duterte's alleged unexplained wealth, failure to fully disclose assets in her Statements of Assets, Liabilities and Net Worth (SALNs), and failure to divest from business interests while in office.
Ridon will lead the charge, with Diokno as second lead under Article II. The rest of the nine prosecutors are Luistro, De Lima, Chua, Flores, Gutierrez, Suan, and Dinagat Islands lone district Rep. Kaka Bag-ao.
Meanwhile, Article III charges the Vice President with bribery, graft, and corruption, and culpable violation of the Constitution, alleging she distributed monetary gifts to high-ranking DepEd officials to circumvent procurement and related laws.
San Juan City lone district Rep. Ysabel “Bel” Zamora, Chua, Gutierrez, and Bag-ao were assigned to the article, with Chua as lead and Gutierrez as second lead.
Lastly, Article IV accuses Duterte of culpable violation of the Constitution, high crimes, and betrayal of public trust for allegedly threatening President Marcos, First Lady Liza Araneta-Marcos, and former House Speaker Martin Romualdez, as well as for inciting sedition.
Believed to the strongest charge against Duterte, it centers on her public statements that she had contracted an assassin to kill the three, should she herself get killed.
Defensor and De Lima will serve as lead and second lead, respectively, for the final article. Luistro and Zamora were also assigned to it.
The prosecution panel is composed of lawyer-lawmakers and veteran litigators from both the majority and minority blocs, several of whom have participated in past high-profile impeachment proceedings and congressional investigations.
2 trial spokespersons named
Also during the presser, Luistro formally announced then designation of Kabataan Party-list Rep. Renee Co and Lanao del Sur 1st district Rep. Zia Alonto Adiong as House impeachment trial spokespersons.
"I am deeply honored and profoundly humbled to accept my appointment as one of the House trial spokespersons in the impeachment trial of Vice President Sara Duterte," Adiong said in a subsequent statement.
"I am fully prepared to discharge this responsibility to the best of my ability and look forward to contributing meaningfully to a trial that is fair, thorough, and worthy of the trust of the nation," he said.
Luistro called the convening of the Senate impeachment court Monday, May 18 as commendable. However, she was quick to note that the Constitution does not stop there as it also requires the actual trial to be conducted forthwith.
“As we have witnessed yesterday, the impeachment court already convened and we commend the action of the Senate of the Philippines for responding to the mandate of the Constitution. Nevertheless, let us be reminded that what is mandated to be forthwith is not only the convening but is the trial that is mandated to the forthwith,” she said.
The impeachment court has ordered the issuance of a writ of summons to Duterte, who will have 10 calendar days from receipt to file her answer to the articles of impeachment. The trial schedule is expected to take shape once she responds.

Related Tags

Sara Duterte Impeachment Articles of Impeachment Gerville \"Jinky Bitrics\" Luistro senate
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