Sara Duterte impeachment trial Day 21: Hostile witness grilling and lawyer clashes mark proceedings

The 21st day of the impeachment trial against Vice President Sara Duterte saw prosecutors grill former Department of Education (DepEd) Undersecretary Michael Poa, who was later declared a "hostile witness." Poa had repeatedly stated in previous hearings that he had no personal knowledge of how DepEd's confidential funds were disbursed, despite being made to respond to state auditors' queries on the matter. Private prosecutor Benjamin Tolosa Jr.'s description of Poa as an "abogadong walang alam" (a lawyer who knows nothing) was stricken from the record after defense team lead counsel Sheila Sison objected. Sison, who is also a co-counsel for Poa in the defense team, argued the remark was inappropriate. Senate impeachment court presiding officer Francis Escudero agreed, deeming the phrase "discourteous." Following this exchange, Escudero declared Poa a hostile witness, permitting Tolosa to ask leading questions. During the examination, Poa testified that purchasing information from informants using confidential funds does not guarantee success, in response to a question about Joint Circular 2015-01, which governs the use of such funds. This statement followed lengthy arguments and objections from Sison, who accused Tolosa of leading questions. Escudero appealed for patience from fellow senator-judges and the public, acknowledging the difficulty of navigating the "battle of wits" among lawyers. Poa further testified that he did not inquire whether DepEd's special disbursing officer, Eduard Fajarda, was personally disbursing the confidential funds, nor did he ask if rewards to informants had yielded successful information gathering. He reiterated his lack of personal knowledge regarding the fund's usage. After Poa was discharged, Escudero granted the prosecution's request to issue subpoenas for three individuals: Bresilio Sabaldan from the Commission on Audit (COA), former DepEd Assistant Secretary Sunshine Cherry Fajarda, and Police Major Jovelyn Magay. Escudero also discussed potential adjustments to the trial schedule, proposing full-day hearings from October 1 to 15, with specific dates allocated for intensive proceedings. Earlier, House prosecutor Joel Chua indicated that the prosecution was considering dropping the bribery charge under Article 3 of the impeachment case. This article alleges that Duterte committed bribery by offering monetary gifts to DepEd officials to circumvent procurement laws. Chua stated this consideration aims to prevent a protracted hearing, emphasizing that no final decision has been made. Source: GMA News Philippines