The House prosecution panel will present Vice President Sara Duterte’s former chief of staff Michael Wesley Poa and Philippine Statistics Authority (PSA) Assistant National Statistician Marizza Grande as witnesses in the impeachment trial next week.
The move is part of the prosecution’s effort to establish the alleged misuse of PHP112.5 million in confidential funds allocated to the Department of Education (DepEd) when Duterte was education secretary.
“In order to maximize the schedule that is given to us by the Honorable Impeachment Court for Sept. 2, that is next Wednesday, Your Honor, we would like to respectfully move for the issuance of subpoena ad testificandum to Attorney Michael Wesley T. Poa, if the same should be necessary, as well as to Ms. Marizza B. Grande of the (PSA),” lead prosecutor and Batangas Rep. Gerville “Jinky Bitrics” Luistro said Wednesday.
Presiding Officer Senator Francis “Chiz” Escudero noted that Poa, now part of Duterte’s defense team, was already in court and “more than willing to testify,” making a subpoena unnecessary.
Escudero said Poa could even take the witness stand on Sept. 1 if either of the two military witnesses scheduled that day fails to appear.
“Given that Attorney Poa is here and more than willing to testify, as intimated earlier, then we jump to Attorney Poa, should the other earlier two witnesses fail to appear on Sept. 1, without need of issuing a subpoena to Attorney Poa,” Escudero said.
“We submit to that, Your Honor,” Luistro replied.
The two military witnesses, Col. Manaros Boransing II and Col. Magtangol Panopio, were earlier identified in connection with certifications submitted by the DepEd in response to Commission on Audit findings on its confidential fund expenditures.
The officers previously testified in a House inquiry that their military units did not receive DepEd confidential funds for activities covered by the certifications, including Youth Leadership Summits.
Poa, who served as Duterte’s chief of staff and spokesperson at DepEd, had a role in obtaining and submitting the military certifications. He was also identified in House proceedings as having material information on the preparation of accomplishment reports involving the department’s confidential funds.
Boransing was supposed to testify Wednesday but sought a postponement to coordinate with his military superiors before leaving his post.
Escudero granted the request, citing the “exigencies of his position” as commanding officer of Task Force Zamboanga, and reset his testimony to Sept. 1. Panopio is also scheduled to appear that day.
The prosecution dropped retired Maj. Gen. Adonis Bajao as a witness after the court encountered difficulty serving him a subpoena because his address could not be established.
Grande, meanwhile, is expected to testify on PSA verification of names appearing in acknowledgment receipts submitted to account for confidential fund expenditures.
The prosecution said the PSA findings would form part of its evidence concerning purported confidential fund recipients whose identities could not be verified in official civil registry records.
The impeachment court also granted the prosecution’s request to mark additional documents it received from the PSA ahead of Grande’s testimony.
The prosecution is presenting the witnesses under the first article of impeachment, which accuses Duterte of misusing PHP612.5 million in confidential funds – PHP500 million released to the Office of the Vice President and PHP112.5 million to DepEd. (PNA)