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Manila Bulletin devider Philippines devider National devider 'Nagkatawang lupa na': De Lima says impeachment allegations have turned into evidence

'Nagkatawang lupa na': De Lima says impeachment allegations have turned into evidence

Published Jul 11, 2026 05:24 pm

At A Glance

  • Rep. Leila de Lima says the first week of VP Sara Duterte's impeachment trial turned years of allegations into actual evidence.
  • The prosecution focused on Article IV, presenting NBI Agent John Mark Calilung to authenticate video recordings of Duterte's alleged death threats.
  • De Lima stresses that each of the 57 listed witnesses has a role, noting the case will be built on the entirety of evidence, not just one testimony.
Mamamayang Liberal (ML) Party-list Rep. Leila de Lima (left), Vice President Sara Duterte (Senate PRIB)
Mamamayang Liberal (ML) Party-list Rep. Leila de Lima (left), Vice President Sara Duterte (Senate PRIB)


If there was one significant development during the first week of Vice President Sara Duterte's Senate impeachment trial, it was the incarnate of years worth of allegations into actual evidence.
“We saw first week as allegations turning into evidence," Mamamayang Liberal (ML) Party-list Rep. Leila de Lima said during the Saturday News Forum on July 11 at Dapo Restaurant in Quezon City.
De Lima is one of the 11 solon-prosecutors who are bent on gaining a conviction on Duterte, who since 2025 has been impeached by the House of Representatives twice.
“The first week was important because the prosecution started converting the allegations as contained in the articles of impeachment into evidence, which was tested or which was subjected to cross-examination,” De Lima said.
Taking certer stage during the first week was Article IV, which accuses respondent Duterte of making grave threats and inciting to sedition over her Nov. 23, 2024 remarks that she has supposedly contracted someone to kill President Marcos, First Lady Liza Araneta-Marcos and former House Speaker Martin Romualdez if she herself were killed.
The prosecution opened its case by presenting National Bureau of Investigation (NBI) Senior Agent John Mark Calilung, whose testimony was intended to authenticate the video recordings containing Duterte’s alleged death threats.
According to De Lima, Calilung’s testimony represented only the first step in proving Article IV. She emphasized that each witness serves a distinct purpose in building the prosecution’s case.
Calilung was the first of the prosecution panel's 57 listed witnesses in the high-takes trial.
“So hindi rin po ito nagtatapos sa isang testigo lang. Ang kabuuan po ng ebidensya, ang tunay na pundasyon ng isang kaso. Because every witness has a specific role to play,” De Lima said.
(So this does not end with just one witness. The entirety of the evidence is the true foundation of a case, because every witness has a specific role to play.)
She said the prosecution will present additional witnesses to corroborate the authenticated recordings, explain the significance of the digital evidence and discuss the findings of the National Bureau of Investigation’s investigation.
"Every prosecution starts with allegations and must end with proof,” noted the former Department of Justice (DOJ) secretary and senator.

Related Tags

impeachment trial Impeachment Sara Duterte death threat Leila de Lima
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