The Senate is considering dedicating five hours every morning to Vice President Sara Duterte’s impeachment trial to ensure the proceedings move swiftly without disrupting daily legislative work, Senator Erwin Tulfo shared on Tuesday.
During an interview on DZRH, Tulfo revealed that members of the chamber reached a consensus during a caucus last week to hold impeachment court sessions between 10 a.m. and 3 p.m., from Monday through Wednesday.
According to the proposed schedule, regular legislative sessions will run from 4 p.m. to 11 p.m. on the same days, leaving a one-hour buffer to transition the chamber. Committee hearings would instead take place on Thursdays and Fridays.
”Mukhang amenable naman. Sang-ayon naman lahat,” Tulfo said.
The Senate Impeachment Court wrapped up its seventh day of trial on Monday, July 20, and was scheduled to gather again on Tuesday, July 21.
House prosecutors are set to call National Bureau of Investigation Director Melvin Matibag as their last witness for Article IV of the complaint, which covers alleged threats linked to the vice president.
Subpoena on Financial Records Finalized
Tulfo also highlighted that Senate President Francis “Chiz” Escudero’s order mandating the disclosure of Duterte’s financial documents is now final after no senators voiced opposition.
He noted that a formal vote was unneeded since minority lawmakers did not challenge Escudero’s directive as presiding officer.
”Yun na yung ruling eh,” Tulfo said.
”Wala [nag-object] eh… So ibig sabihin sumasang-ayon din yung kabila [minority] na ganun ang ruling ng presiding officer,” he added.
Tulfo stated that while senators previously debated the matter during a caucus—where majority members favored opening the records and the minority resisted—the prosecution panel successfully defended its motion during Monday’s trial.
He credited Akbayan Party-list Representative Chel Diokno, serving on the prosecution team, with clearly articulating the legal grounds, convincing lawmakers to accept the decision without requiring a division of the house or nominal voting.
“Mukhang maganda namang naipaliwanag ni Chel Diokno yung point, so wala nang nag-object,” Tulfo said.
On Monday, the court granted the prosecution’s petition to subpoena Duterte’s banking records, tax filings, and Anti-Money Laundering Council files spanning 2007 to 2025.
Escudero determined that the requested documentation met court standards and bore prima facie relevance to allegations of unexplained wealth under Article II of the impeachment charge.