The cross-examination strategy of Vice President Sara Duterte's defense lawyers backfired against their client's interest after they seemingly convinced the Senate impeachment court to grant the prosecution’s subpoena request for Zuleika Lopez.

House impeachment adviser and prosecution spokesperson Robert Ace Barbers detailed what happened during day three of Duterte's impeachment trial on Wednesday, July 8 that led to this result.

Defense lawyer Carlo Joaquin Narvasa carried out cross-examination on prosecution witness National Bureau of Investigation (NBI) Senior Agent John Mark Calilung, who the previous day attested to the authenticity of respondent Duterte's infamous "death threat video" against President Marcos and other members of the First Family.

The video was a two hour-plus footage of Duterte’s virtual press conference on Nov. 23, 2024, where Lopez, her close aide and chief-of-staff, was also present.

Calilung confirmed this video in his capacity as cybercrime investigator, and Narvasa sought to undermine the widely viewed death threat.

“Napansin namin na malaking bahagi ng cross-examination ay umikot kay Atty. Zuleika Lopez—sa kanyang reaksyon, sa kanyang ugnayan sa Vice President, at sa mga pangyayaring nakapaligid sa mga pahayag na naging sentro ng kasong ito,” Barbers noted.

(We noticed that a large part of the cross-examination revolved around Atty. Zuleika Lopez—her reaction, her connection to the Vice President, and the circumstances surrounding the statements at the center of this case.)

“Kung ang mismong depensa ay nakikitang mahalaga ang mga usaping iyon upang maipaliwanag ang konteksto ng mga naging pahayag, lalo lamang nitong ipinakikita na si Atty. Lopez ay isang material witness na may personal na kaalaman sa mahahalagang pangyayari,” Barbers said.

(If the defense itself sees those issues as important to explain the context of the statements, it only shows that Atty. Lopez is a material witness with personal knowledge of significant events.)

The prosecution team filed their request to subpoena Lopez on Tuesday morning. By Wednesday evening, following the cross-examination, it was reported that the court had granted this request.

Lopez is scheduled to take the witness stand on July 14 in a hearing that's bound to produce high courtroom drama.

Lopez and Duterte apparently go way back. Lopez was the city hall administrator when Duterte was the mayor of Davao City from 2010 to 2013.

To say that the Vice President is fiercely protective of Lopez is an understatement. The respondent willingly defied protocols at the House of Representatives in November 2024 just to be physically close to her aide.

At that time, Lopez was being detained by the Committee on Good Government and Public Accountability--the House equivalent of the Senate Blue Ribbon Committee.

According to Barbers, the defense's line of questioning on Calilung underscored—not diminished—the relevance of Lopez’s firsthand knowledge of the circumstances surrounding the utterance of death threats.

He noted that the prosecution was not the one that brought those issues to the forefront during the trial. "Ang depensa mismo ang naglaan ng malaking oras sa pagtatanong tungkol sa kanya (The defense itself spent much time asking about her)."

“Kapag ang isang panig ay paulit-ulit na bumabalik sa isang tao, sa kanyang reaksyon, sa kanyang relasyon sa akusado, at sa mga pangyayaring nakapaligid sa insidente, kinikilala nilang may mahalagang papel ang taong iyon sa pagbuo ng buong larawan ng nangyari,” explained the former quad-committee (quad-comm) overall chairman.

(When one side repeatedly returns to a person, to her reaction, to her relationship with the accused, and to the circumstances surrounding the incident, they acknowledge that person’s important role in forming the full picture of what happened)

Referring to Lopez, Barbers said: "Ang impeachment ay paghahanap ng katotohanan. At ang pinakamainam na paraan upang malaman ang katotohanan ay pakinggan ang mga taong may personal na kaalaman sa mga pangyayaring pinag-uusapan."

(Impeachment is a search for truth. And the best way to know the truth is to listen to the persons with personal knowledge of the events being discussed.)