DAVAO CITY – Vice Pres. Sara Duterte, defended her legal team against accusations of bullying, and challenged the evidence presented against her in the ongoing impeachment trial.
The Vice President, in a statement, likened her defense counsel’s position to the Bible’s character David facing Goliath, saying the accusation of bullying was an attempt to portray her lawyer as an aggressor despite the imbalance of political power.
“Lorna Kapunan calling a defense counsel a bully is like calling David the aggressor against Goliath,” Vice President Duterte said a day after the private prosecutor described lead defense counsel Sheila Sison as a bully during the impeachment proceedings on Tuesday, Oct. 13.
Kapunan, serving as a private prosecutor in the impeachment trial of Vice President Duterte, accused the defense of portraying itself as a victim through its statements about persecution, its use of the term “accused,” and its alleged denial of due process.
Vice President Duterte rejected the claims and questioned the basis of the impeachment case. She accused her critics of intimidating OVP personnel, misusing the House of Representatives’ subpoena powers, and making allegations without strong evidence.
“After all that, where is the evidence?” Vice President Duterte asked.
The Vice President also criticized the decision to bring the Articles of Impeachment before the Senate, arguing that the trial should not be used to compensate for what she described as shortcomings in the prosecution’s evidence.
The latest exchange followed a major development in the proceedings on Tuesday, when the Senate impeachment court approved the prosecution’s request to drop three of the four impeachment charges against the Vice President to expedite the trial.
Meanwhile, the remaining charge concerns alleged unexplained wealth and undisclosed business interests involving the Vice President and her husband, Atty. Manases Carpio. Vice President Duterte earlier denied such accusations and any wrongdoing.
She also raised concerns over alleged political maneuvering involving the 2027 national budget
and about alleged cash distributions and political deals related to the proposed budget, saying public funds could be used to influence senators presiding over her impeachment trial or to reward House members who supported her impeachment.
The Vice President further defended her legal team’s work, saying its members had devoted substantial time and personal sacrifices to preparing her defense. She argued that the counsel was performing its professional duty by challenging the accusations against her.
Vice President Duterte called for evidence-based proceedings and consistent accountability, also referring to President Ferdinand “Bongbong” Marcos Jr. in criticizing what she described as selective demands for accountability.
“The public deserves better than political theater disguised as accountability,” she said.
Vice President Duterte urged those involved in the proceedings to focus on evidence rather than personal attacks and to ensure that accountability is applied consistently.
Meanwhile, Davao City First District Rep. Paolo Duterte criticized the withdrawal of three impeachment complaints, accusing the proponents of attacking Vice President Duterte for months before backing out of the cases.
In a statement on Wednesday, Oct. 14, the Davao lawmaker questioned the complainants’ decision to withdraw the complaints, challenging them to stand by their accusations if they had sufficient evidence.
“If your evidence is strong, stand by it. If you have sufficient grounds, present them. But do not call withdrawal a victory,” Rep. Duterte said.
Rep. Duterte stressed that impeachment should not be treated as a political game, adding that the public deserved accountability rather than political theatrics.
He also questioned the public funds allegedly spent during what he described as 38 days of pressure and attacks against the Vice President.
Rep. Duterte urged the complainants to be held accountable for their accusations, saying they should not be allowed to disregard the damage caused by their allegations. (By Ivy Tejano)
