The roster of witnesses lined up against Vice President Sara Duterte has grown past 30, House lead prosecutor Rep. Gerville Luistro disclosed Monday, as the prosecution moved to lodge its pre-trial brief before the Senate impeachment court.
Speaking at a press briefing, Luistro declined to lock in a precise headcount, saying the figure would become clear once the document reached the court. “Today, we are scheduled to file our pre-trial brief… The witnesses are not only 25, not only 30, it’s even more. As to the exact figure and who these witnesses are, let’s wait until the pre-trial brief is filed with the impeachment court today,” she said.
The expanded number marks a shift from earlier estimates. Luistro had previously pegged the panel’s roster at an average of 25, a count she described in late May as covering all four Articles of Impeachment and including hostile witnesses drawn from the Department of Education and the Office of the Vice President.
The pre-trial brief functions as the controlling framework for the trial ahead. By the rules Luistro has outlined, only the witnesses, documents, and stipulated facts captured in the brief — or later folded into the pre-trial order — may be introduced once the presentation of evidence begins. She has likened the filing to a blueprint that fixes the boundaries of what each side can argue.
Both camps faced the same Monday deadline to submit their briefs, with the pre-trial conference set for June 18 at 9 a.m. at the Senate. That session is expected to be the first point at which the prosecution learns what evidence Duterte’s defense intends to mount, since her side has not disclosed witnesses or exhibits through the earlier House proceedings.
The impeachment stems from allegations of graft and corruption, bribery, unexplained wealth, and grave threats. Trial proper is scheduled to open July 6, though the timetable remains subject to the Senate court amid the chamber’s unresolved leadership dispute.
