The defense team of Vice President Sara Duterte stated on Tuesday, September 8, that while the prospect of calling her to the witness stand had been floated early in the proceedings, they did not anticipate the prosecution pursuing the move at this stage.
Addressing the press, defense spokesperson Atty. Michael Poa revealed that the panel has already formulated its stance on the matter. However, he declined to elaborate to avoid preemption should the impeachment court ultimately issue a subpoena to the Vice President.
“We have a position on the matter,” Poa said in a press briefing. “Ayaw namin i-preempt kung ano man ang ilalagay namin sa aming comment kung sakaling mapatawag nga po via subpoena ang respondent, in this case, is the Vice President,” he added.
The defense’s reaction follows a statement from prosecution panel member Atty. Lorna Kapunan, who announced plans to drop their remaining witnesses for Article I while reserving the right to summon Duterte after presenting all four articles of impeachment.
In response, the defense raised concerns regarding the strategy, pointing to an inherent conflict involving potential constitutional issues.
“We will have to put our comments, whether objection man or simple comments, when the proper time comes,” he added.
Despite the developments, Poa maintained that the defense was not entirely caught off guard, as the idea of calling the Vice President to testify had been brought up during the opening days of the trial.
“Hindi namin ine-expect. Ayoko naman sabihin na nagulat pero hindi namin ine-expect,” Poa said.
“Yung pagpapatawag sa ating Bise-Presidente, I think yung first few days pa lang ng trial, napag-usapan na iyan,” Poa explained.
Poa noted that while the scenario was predictable, taking formal action remains premature at this time given that the prosecution has yet to officially request a subpoena from the court.
“It’s something we could have reasonably anticipated but sa ngayon, hindi pa naman talaga siya right pag-usapan kasi hindi pa naman sila humihingi ng subpoena sa ngayon,” Poa said.