The House prosecution panel has finalized 57 witnesses for the impeachment trial of Vice President Sara Duterte, including a former Davao court sheriff and her longtime aide Zuleika Lopez.
Based on a 57-page pretrial brief, former sheriff Abe Andres was listed to testify on Duterte’s alleged tendency toward violence in connection with the accusation that she arranged threats against President Marcos, First Lady Liza Marcos, and former Speaker Martin Romualdez.
The allegation forms Article IV of the impeachment complaint, which prosecutors intend to present first when the trial opens on July 6.
Aside from Andres and Lopez, the prosecution also listed law enforcement personnel and journalists who covered Duterte’s late-night press briefing in November 2024, where she allegedly made remarks about the supposed assassination plan.
For Article I, which involved the alleged misuse of Php 612.5 million in confidential funds, prosecutors listed 27 witnesses, including Lopez and a person identified as “Mary Grace Piattos,” who was supposedly among the recipients of the funds.
The prosecution also named former Budget Secretary Amenah Pangandaman and other officials who were expected to testify on the request, release, withdrawal, turnover, liquidation, and use of confidential funds in the Office of the Vice President and the Department of Education.
Duterte defense spokesperson Michael Poa was also included in the prosecution list to testify on DepEd’s responses to Commission on Audit findings and the submission of supporting documents related to confidential fund expenditures.
Poa said the prosecution had the discretion to present Piattos as a witness and maintained that the defense would be ready for cross-examination. Prosecutors said they also sought a clearer explanation of the defense witnesses’ proposed testimonies, arguing that their stated purposes were too general to guide the impeachment court.