The pre-trial conference (PTC) for Vice President Sara Duterte's Senate impeachment trial--which entered its fourth day Wednesday, June 24--is now over halfway complete in terms of the marking of documents.

Perhaps more importantly, the actual trial is still on track to begin on July 6, as originally planned, despite the perceived protracted nature of the PTC.

Thus, said House prosecution team member Mamamayang Liberal (ML) Party-list Rep. Leila de Lima ,who gave an update to reporter on the sidelines of the PTC.

“Siguro (Maybe) more than 50 percent,” De Lima said regarding the marking of the voluminous documentary evidence.

Despite the daunting clerical task of marking and signing thousands of pages, De Lima said the ongoing process is not expected to affect the scheduled start of the high-stakes trial.

“Hindi naman siguro maaantala July 6 (I don't think the July 6 start will ne delayed),” said the former senator and Department of Justice (DOJ) secretary.

The PTC--where members of the prosecution and defense panels have been low-key sizing each other up--began last June 18.

The House of Representatives---which earlier this year held committee-level proceedings on the impeachment complaints filed against Duterte--earlie submitted to the Senate four articles of impeachment.

De Lima said evidence related to Article 2 of the impeachment complaint, which concerns alleged unexplained wealth, could be completed within the day or by Thursday because it involves fewer documents than Article 1, which covers allegations involving confidential funds.

De Lima said the bigger challenge remains the marking of confidential fund-related documents, including acknowledgment receipts attributed to alleged recipients.

She added that the process has also taken longer because marked exhibits are being countersigned by representatives of both parties, a requirement she said was insisted upon by the defense.

Also on Wednesday, the House prosecutors filed a manifestation before the Senate impeachment court seeking the adoption of four additional pre-trial measures that they said would help ensure an orderly, transparent and efficient impeachment trial

In a pleading titled “Manifestation with Proposal on Certain Additional Pre-Trial Matters,” the prosecution panel asked the court to: allow the use of Filipino and English during proceedings, require advance disclosure of witnesses, permit both public and private prosecutors to examine witnesses, and open a sealed Bureau of Internal Revenue (BIR) records box currently under the Court’s custody.

The filing forms part of the ongoing pre-trial proceedings ahead of the formal start of trial next month

The prosecution first proposed that counsel and witnesses be allowed to use either Filipino or English during the proceedings.

According to the filing, allowing the use of Filipino would make the trial more accessible to the public and enable witnesses to express themselves more clearly and naturally.

The prosecution argued that because the impeachment trial involves matters of significant public interest, the proceedings should be understandable to ordinary Filipinos who will be following the case.

The proposal would not eliminate the use of English but would give participants flexibility to use either language during testimony and arguments.

The prosecution also informed the court that it was willing to adopt a proposal raised by the defense requiring parties to disclose intended witnesses at least three calendar days before they are scheduled to testify.

According to the prosecution, the defense argued that such advance notice would allow it to prepare adequately for witness examination.

While prosecutors noted that the identities of their witnesses and the nature of their expected testimonies have already been sufficiently disclosed in their pre-trial brief, they said they were willing to accommodate the request to eliminate any potential basis for delay once trial begins.

The prosecution said the arrangement would ensure that neither side could later claim surprise or lack of preparation as grounds for postponing proceedings.

The prosecution further asked the court to authorize both public prosecutors and private prosecutors to conduct witness examinations during trial.

Under the proposal, designated members of both groups would be allowed to handle direct examination, cross-examination, re-direct examination and other witness questioning.

The panel argued that the impeachment case covers a broad range of issues involving public finance, government auditing, confidential funds, banking records and other specialized matters that may require different expertise.

Allowing both public and private prosecutors to participate would help ensure a more efficient presentation of evidence, the filing stated. The prosecution added that it would not object if a similar arrangement were extended to the defense panel.

Prehaps the most consequential proposal from the prosecutors concerns a sealed BIR box transmitted to the Senate as part of the impeachment records.

The prosecution asked the court to open the box under its supervision, conduct an inventory of its contents and allow the records to be pre-marked before trial.

According to the filing, both parties have identified BIR-related documents among their reserved evidence, making it prudent to determine at an early stage what records are actually contained in the sealed package.

The prosecution emphasized that opening the box would not automatically make any document admissible as evidence.

Questions regarding authenticity, admissibility, relevance and evidentiary value would still be resolved by the impeachment court if and when the documents are formally offered during trial.