MANILA, Philippines — Lawyers for Vice President Sara Duterte and House prosecutors began to attend a Senate pre-trial conference on Thursday, June 18, ahead of Duterte’s impeachment trial.

The pre-trial proceedings seek to stipulate and simplify issues, identify evidence and witnesses, set trial dates, and address other matters that would “promote a fair and expeditious” trial, according to a June 9 notice signed by Senate President Sherwin Gatchalian.

The pre-trial conference will be conducted before the clerk of court, a role currently held by lawyer and Senate Secretary Renato Bantug Jr.

House lead prosecutor and Batangas 2nd District Representative Jinky Luistro previously said the prosecution would ask the impeachment court whether it would adopt an open rule, allowing prosecutors to raise matters beyond those already covered during witness examination.

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The prosecution would also seek guidance on whether both sides will be allowed to use Filipino during the proceedings.

“We understand that this is a constitutional process. This is not purely legal. What is at stake is the interest of the Filipino people,” Luistro said on Monday, June 15. 

Both parties submitted on Monday their pre-trial briefs, containing a summary of admitted facts, proposed stipulations, a list of documents and exhibits, and the witnesses they intend to present along with the purpose of their testimonies.

Luistro said the 11-member prosecution team plans to present at least 57 witnesses. This is because they “recognize the rule that only those witnesses whose names were submitted pre-trial will be allowed to testify during the trial.” 

The pre-trial notice also states that the conference would be closed to the media and the public to provide the “widest freedom and latitude” in attaining its objectives. 

There are no specific provisions on how the pre-trial must proceed in the 1987 Constitution and the Senate rules handbook. 

However, Senate Resolution No. 39 provides that the “provisions of the Rules of the Senate and the revised Rules of Court shall apply suppletorily whenever applicable.” This allows the Senate to draw on existing court procedures to address matters not specifically covered by its own impeachment rules.

Pursuant to the rules of court, the impeachment court must issue a pre-trial order reflecting the matters agreed upon and decided during the pre-trial conference.

The trial of former president Joseph Estrada from 2000 to 2001 had a pre-trial hearing, while the trial of former chief justice Renato Corona in 2012 did not. 

The Senate is likely to begin the impeachment trial in July.

The House impeached Duterte for a second time in May over charges that include misuse of confidential funds, bribery of education officials, unexplained wealth, and threats to the life of President Ferdinand Marcos Jr. and his family. – Patricia Danica Fontilar and Dwight de Leon/Rappler.com

Patricia Danica Fontilar is a journalism student at the University of the Philippines Diliman and the managing editor of Tinig ng Plaridel, the official student publication of the UP College of Media and Communication. She is currently a Rappler intern.