Vice President Sara Duterte’s impeachment trial could reach a verdict as early as December 16, Senate impeachment court spokesperson Reginald Tongol announced on October 2. The proceedings in Manila have accelerated significantly after prosecutors trimmed their witness lists and saved 27 trial days of trial time.
Reginald Tongol Outlines the December 16 Verdict Timeline
The Senate impeachment court may conclude its proceedings before the legislature leaves for its holiday recess, according to Senate impeachment court spokesperson Reginald Tongol. Speaking during a virtual press briefing, Tongol explained that the trial is aggressively ahead of schedule despite a brief scheduling adjustment at the start of October. The court adjourned early on October 1 and suspended the following day’s session after granting a defense request to defer the testimony of Anti-Money Laundering Council Executive Director Ronel Buenaventura over confidentiality concerns. Proceedings are scheduled to resume with Buenaventura on the witness stand.
Under the governing pre-trial order, the prosecution originally lined up 57 witnesses across 62 trial days, while the defense intended to call 45 witnesses over 30 trial days. However, strategic decisions by the House prosecution panel to trim their witness roster have drastically compressed that timeline, saving the tribunal 27 trial days in total.
“If the defense consumes all 30 days they requested, then the verdict may come by December 16,”
Reginald Tongol, Senate Impeachment Court Spokesperson
Preserving the Evidentiary Record
House prosecutors have actively worked to keep the proceedings from spilling over into 2027. Counsel for the prosecution Benjamin Tolosa Jr. noted that the legal team shares the public and senator-judges’ desire to conclude the trial swiftly without compromising the evidentiary record. Prosecutors previously trimmed their witness list under Article IV concerning grave threats after concluding they had met their evidentiary goals before resting that charge. A similar streamlining approach was applied to Article I, which addresses allegations regarding the misuse of confidential funds.
Regarding Article III, which accuses Vice President Duterte of bribery connected to cash envelopes distributed to officials involved in Department of Education procurement processes during her tenure as secretary, Tolosa clarified that dropping the bribery article remains under discussion rather than a settled certainty.
Coordinating Document Disclosures
The trial continues to address multiple articles of impeachment. Alongside the confidential funds and bribery allegations, Article II charges the Vice President with a culpable violation of the Constitution and betrayal of public trust over wealth alleged to be manifestly disproportionate to her lawful income.
As the prosecution prepares to wrap up its evidence presentation for Article I, the legal teams are coordinating document disclosures. Tongol noted that the temporary pause in witness testimony offers the defense legal counsel critical time to examine extensive paperwork.
Once the prosecution formally offers its exhibits and the defense submits its comments, the defense panel will begin calling its allotted witnesses across its permitted 30-day window.
