Defense cries foul over prosecution's last minute bid to switch witness

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The defense team of Vice President Sara Duterte objected to the attempt of the prosecution panel to replace the witness from the Bureau of Internal Revenue (BIR) who was scheduled to testify for Thursday’s impeachment trial.

This, after House prosecutor Terry Ridon of Bicol Saro party-list requested that the impeachment court be allowed to present financial analyst Alexander Cabrera first, as lawyer Erwin Matib, the private prosecutor who was supposed to present BIR Office of the Commissioner chief of staff Atty. Anne Loraine Garcia-Marquez, was supposedly sick.

Defense lead counsel Sheila Sison, however, argued that the move was “really unfair,” stressing that their team had already prepared for the testimony of the BIR official.

“We object to this switching at the last minute. In fact, not even at the last minute, today of the witness that the prosecution intends to present today. We prepared for the BIR witness which they had disclosed. Had they known that problem since yesterday, we expect that we would have at least been notified yesterday, Your Honor,” Sison said.

“We don’t know if this belated notice, ultra belated notice, will suffice to afford the respondent the opportunity to prepare for their supposed forensic financial analyst,” she added.

Senate impeachment court presiding officer Francis Escudero noted that the impeachment court has not yet issued a subpoena for Cabrera, but Ridon said that the financial analyst is already in the holding room in the chamber. —AOL,GMA News