Legal counsel for Vice President Sara Duterte has requested that prosecutors merge two perjury complaints against Ramil Madriaga to allow for a joint decision.
During a online media conference on Wednesday, August 19, Atty. Paolo Panelo stated that the second complaint stems directly from the first, as it addresses supplementary claims put forward by Madriaga in a follow-up statement.
“We’re hoping for a consolidation so that it will be resolved together,” Panelo said.
Panelo noted that combining the complaints into a single proceeding would streamline the process, given that the underlying claims and supporting materials are closely connected.
“Instead of doing two separate proceedings, one proceeding na lang, kasi related naman yung allegations, related din yung proof,” he said.
According to Panelo, the initial perjury complaint is currently awaiting a decision. The follow-up charge was submitted to address new statements presented in Madriaga’s additional statement.
“Yung mga panibagong detalye na binigay niya doon sa supplemental affidavit niya, yun ang binasag namin dito sa second perjury complaint,” he added.
Panelo confirmed that the defense will formally ask the Taguig City Prosecutor’s Office to combine the two filings.
“We will be asking the Office of the City Prosecutor of Taguig to consolidate and resolve together,” Panelo said.
He acknowledged, however, that the prosecutor’s office could turn down the request, which would leave the original complaint to be decided independently.
“It’s also possible, because motion lang po naming,” Panelo said. “Kung i-deny po nila yung motion to consolidate, it can very well happen na mag-decide sila on the first perjury complaint,” he added.
Panelo stated that the second complaint reinforces the evidence submitted in the original filing. He noted that five additional affidavits were included in the latest submission, raising the total count of corroborating witness affidavits across both cases to 12.
Furthermore, the defense team has shared copies of the secondary complaint along with its supporting materials with Duterte’s impeachment defense team for potential use in upcoming Senate proceedings.