Sara Duterte camp: Prosecution had its chance but failed; VP begins defense Monday

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The camp of Vice President Sara Duterte on Saturday hit back at the prosecution, saying the latter had its chance, but failed. It also said Duterte will begin her defense on Monday, November 9.

"The prosecution had its chance. It failed. On Monday, the Vice President begins her defense," Atty. Salvador Paolo Panelo Jr., spokesperson for Duterte, said in a statement.

"We apparently live in two worlds. One where due process and fairness still reign—where an accused is not condemned before she is heard, and where allegations must be proven with clear and convincing evidence presented in court. The other is wherever Atty. Lorna Kapunan and her colleagues have decided these rules no longer apply," he added.

"One world seeks the truth. The other desperately tries to persuade an increasingly skeptical public with asinine sound bites built on half-truths and malicious speculation, spewed out in daily, obtrusive, and nauseating press briefings and interviews," Panelo said.

Duterte's spokesperson made the comments a day after private prosecutor Lorna Kapunan said Duterte is the best evidence against herself.

Kapunan made the response when asked if the vice president taking the witness stand will enable her to answer the impeachable allegations, mainly amassing around P817 million worth of unexplained wealth.

“If the Vice President appears before the impeachment court, she will be the best evidence against herself due to her demeanor, the way she answers. Remember, when she was summoned in House [hearings], she refused to take an oath. Would she even take an oath to tell the truth and nothing but the truth?” Kapunan said.

“The only one she can blame is herself. She gave evidence against herself by declaring in her SALN interest in these companies,” Kapunan said, referring to declared assets of the vice president such as Metro City Chow Foods Corp. and GenCorp. Foods Industries Inc. which Duterte has not divested from even amid a constitutional prohibition.

Kapunan noted that the vice president’s statements of assets, liabilities, and net worth (SALNs)—the same documents in which she did not declare cash on hand or in bank from 2019 to 2025, despite bank officials testifying that she had bank deposits—were signed by Duterte under oath.

"That is the situation of the VP. She is giving evidence against herself," she said.

Kapunan also said the P776 million in remittances sent to Cale88 Foods Corporation, a declared banana chips company and an asset listed in the vice president’s husband's SALN, was another clear-cut indication of unexplained wealth, as the amount was not reflected in the Duterte couple’s joint SALN.

The defense team of Duterte has listed at least 24 initial witnesses it intends to present upon the resumption of the impeachment trial next week.

The impeachment trial of the vice president will resume on Monday, November 9, at 10 a.m. —KG, GMA News