MANILA, Philippines — The House prosecution on Monday withdrew Civil Service Commission Assistant Commissioner Ariel Ronquillo as witness in Vice President Sara Duterte's impeachment trial.
During the 27th day of the impeachment trial, House Prosecutor Rep. Terry Ridon said they are dispensing with Ronquillo's presentation as his testimony was deemed redundant with the statements of former Sandiganbayan Presiding Justice Amparo Cabotaje-Tang and Karen Batu, Officer-in-Charge of the Central Records Division of the Office of the Ombudsman.
The prosecution panel will instead proceed with lawyer Gerardo del Rosario, director of the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) Company Registration and Monitoring Department, as their first witness on Monday.
Del Rosario will authenticate SEC records involving companies in which Duterte declared business interests.
The SEC records will build on the testimony of Batu, who authenticated Duterte’s statements of assets, liabilities and net worth (SALNs) and testified that the Vice President continued listing several business interests after her election in 2022.
Del Rosario's testimony forms part of the prosecution’s allegation that Duterte failed to divest and continued participating in businesses while serving as vice president.
