00:00The prosecution of Vice President Sara Duterte's impeachment trial drops more witnesses for the
00:05article of impeachment on grave threats, including the sheriff punched by Duterte.
00:09This comes after the prosecution dropped the Vice President's Chief of Staff,
00:13Zulaika Lopez, as a witness. The prosecution lays out whom they are dropping and why.
00:18Sheriff Abe Andres is dropped because lead prosecutor Ginky Luistro says both parties
00:23already acknowledged that the 2011 incident of Duterte punching Andres did happen.
00:28Journalists Mikhail Flores and Bons Magsambol are dropped, with Luistro saying
00:32NBI agent John Mark Calilong's testimony already proves the authenticity of the video
00:37of Duterte's threats against President Ferdinand Marcos Jr.
00:40A PNP Firearms Office representative was dropped because Luistro claims the government
00:45showed it already took Duterte's threat against Marcos seriously.
00:48Meantime, the prosecution also drops a family member of a victim of Duterte's threat
00:52because NBI Regional Director Jeremy Lotok already testified that the threat is a private crime.
00:58A psychiatrist is also dropped as a witness because both parties already established
01:02the circumstances surrounding the authenticated video.
01:05Meantime, lead defense lawyer Sheila Cison says,
01:08lengthy manifestations on dropping of witnesses should not be inserted with conclusions.
01:12If the only intent is just to withdraw witnesses, then perhaps it would better serve the purpose
01:19of aiding the speedy disposition of this case if that fact alone will, you know, be the only
01:26thing that will be mentioned without factual assertions or conclusions of facts or even interpretations
01:33of the law.
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