Lead prosecutor Batangas Rep. Gerville Luistro said she never felt any pressure in handling Vice President Sara Duterte’s trial, after former Sen. Antonio Trillanes IV said he backed out as a witness so that prosecution “would be relieved from the pressure it is going through.”
Speaking for herself only, Luistro said she did not feel any external forces trying to shape her decision.
“I am not pressured,” Luistro said on Bilyonaryo News Channel’s “Politiko Talks.”
“To be very honest, wala akong nakita o naramdamang pressure as lead prosecutor. There is none,” she added.
She said that when she read Trillanes’ statement mentioning “pressure” in his decision not to testify, she associated it with the challenge of presenting the remaining witnesses given the voluminous documents they would need to identify and authenticate before the Impeachment Court.
Luistro said the prosecution has always believed that Trillanes’ testimony in Duterte’s trial would be relevant and that he would be competent to speak on certain matters.
She pointed out that he was part of the prosecution’s witness list since the beginning, when it filed his pre-trial brief.
But she said the panel also has to consider his decision not to take the stand anymore.
Instead of appearing as a witness, Trillanes held a press conference where he alleged that Duterte and her husband received money from the Chinese government, and that the Duterte family also got money from an alleged drug lord.
He also accused Duterte of having undeclared peso and dollar time deposits.
He also said that in withdrawing from the trial, it was clear to him that he was not welcome in the impeachment proceedings, noting that the court did not issue a subpoena for him despite being on the witness list.