Defense: No competent evidence shows VP Sara Duterte hired an assassin

Vice President Sara Duterte's defense team on Wednesday argued that the prosecution failed to present competent evidence proving she had hired an assassin, as the Senate impeachment court wrapped up the third day of trial proceedings.

Delivering the defense's closing remarks on Article IV, lawyer Mark Vinluan maintained that even the prosecution had acknowledged that Duterte's statements during her Nov. 23, 2024 press conference did not establish that she had actually contracted an assassin.

Vinluan pointed to an observation made by Senator-Judge Risa Hontiveros during Tuesday's proceedings, when she said: "none of these statements are proof that the Vice President actually contracted an assassin or hired one."

According to Vinluan, the prosecution itself conceded that the video evidence did not conclusively establish the allegation, saying only that it may not "100 percent prove" Duterte had hired an assassin.

"The prosecution admitted that the video does not prove any fact other than its existence," Vinluan said. "In simple words, there is no proof of any contracting of an assassin," he added.

He also challenged the testimony of National Bureau of Investigation (NBI) Senior Agent John Mark Calilung, arguing that neither the witness nor the documentary evidence presented by the prosecution was enough to substantiate the charge.

“Ang testimony ni Calilung, gaya ng iba pang ebidensya kuno ng prosecution, ay hindi sapat para patunayan ang paratang na ito (Calilung’s testimony, like the other supposed evidence of the prosecution, is not sufficient to prove this allegation.),” Vinluan said.

Vinluan further argued that the prosecution was piecing together unrelated materials to support what he described as a "stretch narrative," despite the absence of direct evidence that Duterte had hired an assassin.

He added that Duterte had already clarified that she never spoke with an assassin and that the reference to one came from people who allegedly took her remarks out of context.

"Trying to prove this stretch narrative using a hodgepodge of materials is a waste of this honorable court’s time and the Filipino people’s money," he added.

Article IV of the Articles of Impeachment accuses Duterte of plotting the assassination of President Ferdinand Marcos Jr., issuing grave threats, and inciting to sedition through statements she made during a Nov. 23, 2024 online press briefing.

-Paraluman News