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Manila Bulletin devider Philippines devider National devider Luistro counters Padilla: One-sided prosecution should be expected in impeachment trial

Luistro counters Padilla: One-sided prosecution should be expected in impeachment trial

Published Jul 22, 2026 10:52 pm

At A Glance

  • Lead prosecutor Gerville Luistro explains that bias is inherent in an adversarial impeachment trial, stressing it would be more surprising if the prosecution were neutral or defended the respondent.
  • Senator Robin Padilla urges the prosecution not to be "one-sided" during Vice President Sara Duterte's trial, questioning the credibility of its witnesses.
  • Post-trial remarks draw support from private prosecutor Lorna Kapunan, who calls Luistro's explanation diplomatic, while Padilla's role is noted as the 2022 Senate top vote-getter with 26.6 million votes.
Batangas 2nd district Rep. Gerville "Jinky Bitrics" Luistro (left), Senator Robin Padilla (Senate PRIB)
Batangas 2nd district Rep. Gerville "Jinky Bitrics" Luistro (left), Senator Robin Padilla (Senate PRIB)


Impeachment trial lead prosecutor Batangas 2nd district Rep. Gerville "Jinky Bitrics" Luistro explained in the most motherly way possible on Wednesday, July 22, why Senator-judge Robin Padilla's appeal for the prosecution panel to avoid being "one-sided" was untenable.
"Sana hindi one-sided ang ating prosecution (I hope our prosecution isn't one-sided)," was perhaps the quote of the day during Wednesday's impeachment hearing against respondent Vice President Sara Duterte.
Padilla directed this statement toward Luistro, as he questioned the credibility of the prosecution’s witnesses in the high-stakes trial.
Luistro, a lawyer, seemingly refrained from responding to this point during the proceedings--perhaps out of respect for the proud senator.
But when she was asked about it during the post-trial press conference, she obliged and explained that biases among the involved parties shouldn't be a surprise to anyone.
"With all due respect kay Senator-judge Robin Padilla no, apparently this impeachment trial is adversarial. Maliwanag yun (That is clear)," she said with a grin.
"Kaya mayroon (The reason for a) prosecution, it's to establish the case. Kaya may (The reason for a) defense, is to defend the innocence of the respondent, no?
"So it is very much anticipated that the prosecution is biased toward presenting the case, presenting the evidence, no?" said Luistro as she continued her mini-lecture.
To hammer home her point, the Batangueña said: "Siguro mas nakakapagtaka pag naging neutral ang prosecution, at lalong nakakapagtaka kung ide-defend namin yung respondent, no?"
(Perhaps it would be more surprising if the prosecution became neutral, and even more surprising if we defended the respondent, right?)
"So...," Luistro said in an attempt to add something else, but she stifled her last sentence and just bowed her head.
Sitting beside her at the presser was private prosecutor Lorna Kapunan, who commented, "I think Cong Jinkee is very diplomatic with her answer."
Padilla, a former action movie star, received 26,612,434 votes in the 2022 Senate election, making him the top vote-getter in the race.
Luistro would be more on-the-nose in her response in a radio interview Thursday, July 23.
“We are biased for the prosecution, and the defense is biased for the defense,” she said.
Luistro explained that the prosecution must present evidence supporting the articles of impeachment, which was prepared by the House of Representatives. Duterte’s lawyers, in turn, are expected to answer the charges and defend the Vice President.
“Ang prosecution ay may mandato to establish the case, no? So apparently biased kami to our favor (The prosecution has the mandate to establish the case, right? So apparently we are biased in our favor). The defense, it is presumed—implied—that they are tasked to prove the innocence of the respondent,” she said.
Requiring the prosecution to remain neutral between proving and disproving the allegations would contradict that mandate, Luistro added.

Related Tags

Impeachment Sara Duterte Robin Padilla senator-judges Gerville \"Jinky Bitrics\" Luistro prosecution defense One-sided
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