The impeachment trial of Vice President Sara Duterte is now running about two to three days behind its original schedule as weather-related cancellations and lengthy witness testimonies continue to eat into the 31 days allotted for the prosecution's presentation of Article I of the impeachment complaint.

The 16th day of the impeachment trial of Vice President Sara Duterte at the Senate in Pasay City on Monday, August 17, 2026. (SPPA POOL - Ryan Baldemor)

In an online interview on Wednesday, Aug. 19, Senate Impeachment Court spokesperson Atty. Regie Tongol said the prosecution had initially plotted to present 27 witnesses within 31 trial days, based largely on a target of one witness per day.

“So medyo, in a way, delayed na tayo ngayon,” Tongol said in the interview, noting that the impeachment court had not yet reached even half of the prosecution's listed witnesses for Article 1.

He said the court should have already reached around the ninth or 10th witness by now, but was only at about the sixth witness.

The delay was not solely caused by the cancellation of trial sessions due to inclement weather, Tongol said.

He cited the testimonies of COA auditors Roderick Wamil and Xylene Del Campo, whose presentations each took about three days instead of the one to two days initially anticipated.

The 31-day allocation was designed to give the court some leeway in case individual witnesses required additional time, he said.

Tongol said the court could adjust the trial calendar by extending the number of days allotted to the prosecution, which would consequently reduce or push back the days originally intended for the defense.

He also identified several possible measures to help the court catch up, including dropping witnesses or articles by either party, holding trial sessions on additional days such as Thursdays, Fridays or Saturdays, adding more witnesses per day, or extending the trial hours.

The court has already extended one trial day by an hour, from 3 p.m. to 4 p.m., to accommodate Del Campo's testimony, Tongol said.

However, he noted that extending the trial hours could involve constitutional and procedural considerations because the Senate also has legislative duties and prescribed session schedules.

The possibility of moving the impeachment trial from its current morning schedule to the afternoon remains under discussion, Tongol said.

Senator Juan Miguel “Migz” Zubiri has pushed for afternoon trial sessions, which would allow the impeachment proceedings to run later into the day while giving senators time in the morning for other legislative duties.

Tongol said the Senate President Sherwin Gatchalian and Presiding Officer Francis "Chiz" Escudero have yet to reach a consensus on the proposal.

“For the meantime, we retained the morning sessions,” he said.

The issue could gain more urgency if weather disturbances continue to force cancellations in the coming weeks, although Tongol said the court could also simply extend the trial calendar toward the end rather than immediately add make-up days.

He said the parties could also help shorten the proceedings by dropping some witnesses or articles they deem unnecessary.

Meanwhile, Tongol ruled out, for now, holding the impeachment trial virtually as a way to avoid weather-related disruptions.

He said virtual hearings would raise legal, logistical and technical issues, including the absence of specific rules governing virtual proceedings before the impeachment court and the lack of a Senate platform capable of accommodating the large number of participants.

He said ordinary courts generally allow virtual hearings only in limited circumstances and require parties to seek permission through a motion.

The Senate may also need to amend its rules and the Senate impeachment rules to establish a framework for virtual proceedings, Tongol said.

Even if such a system were pursued, he said, it would likely take more than the next one or two weeks to prepare the necessary platform and rules.

For now, Tongol said the court would continue monitoring the situation and consider adjustments depending on the pace of the proceedings and any further cancellations.