Sara Duterte impeachment trial Day 1: Senate begins historic Duterte impeachment trial

The Senate on Monday convened as an impeachment court to formally open the impeachment trial of Vice President Sara Duterte.

During the first day of the 92-day impeachment proceedings, a new presiding officer was elected and both the prosecution and defense teams made their opening speeches.

Prosecution

• The House prosecution panel said it will first present evidence on Duterte's alleged threat against President Ferdinand "Bongbong" Marcos Jr. and his family, saying it wants to underscore that "impunity is not acceptable."
• House prosecutors opened its case before the Senate impeachment court by accusing Duterte of betraying public trust by allegedly resorting to violence, threatening to kill the President and misusing public funds.
• The House prosecution panel asked the Senate impeachment court to issue subpoenas directing banks to produce the bank records of Duterte and her husband, Manases Carpio, and requiring bank officials to testify on the transactions.
• House prosecutors likewise asked the impeachment court to order the submission of an expanded list of the Bureau of Internal Revenue (BIR) records of Duterte, Carpio, and the businesses they own.

Defense

• Defense lawyer Michael Poa said the Vice President will not appear before the impeachment court as she instead opted to attend the impeachment through her legal counsel. This comes after the Senate impeachment court issued a notice dated July 2, summoning Duterte to attend the formal opening of her impeachment trial.
• Lawyer Sheila Sison, who leads the 16-lawyer defense team, sought Duterte's acquittal in her opening speech, saying the impeachment case was meant to oust the second-highest official elected by 32 million Filipinos.
• Poa positively asserted the opening of the impeachment proceedings, saying it "went smoothly" for both camps

Impeachment Court

• Members of the Senate majority bloc held a caucus early in the day to discuss issues including the possible election of a presiding officer for the impeachment proceedings.
• The Senate begins the historic impeachment proceedings. It convened as an impeachment court past 2 p.m., with 21 senators present in the session hall. The senators wore their respective maroon robes for senator-judges.
• Senate President Sherwin Gatchalian formally opened the impeachment trial with a speech, reminding senator-judges of the importance of due process and fair play at every stage of the impeachment trial.
• Senator-judge Francis "Chiz" Escudero was elected presiding officer of Duterte's impeachment trial. This comes after the nomination of Senator Panfilo Lacson and amid the opposition of Minority Leader Alan Peter Cayetano and the minority bloc.
• Twelve senators voted in favor of Escudero's election, while eight were against.
• The Senate impeachment court resolved pending motions before the court including the unsealing of a box from the Bureau of Internal Revenue (BIR) containing Duterte's tax-related documents. Escudero ordered the BIR box to be returned to the agency closed and sealed but said both defense and prosecution may file a motion to subpoena the tax documents.
• Escudero maintained 16 affirmative votes of senator-judges are required to convict Duterte in her impeachment trial.
• Escudero ordered the issuance of subpoenas for two National Bureau of Investigation (NBI) officials to appear in the impeachment trial.

— VDV, GMA News