MANILA — The defense panel of Vice President Sara Duterte rejected claims that it allegedly mirrored or copied the witness list of the House prosecution team for her upcoming impeachment trial.

In a report, it said that in an ambush interview at the Senate during the third day of the pre-trial conference, defense counsel Atty. Michael Poa said both camps submitted their pre-trial briefs almost simultaneously on June 15.

“Sa tingin ko po, sa aming pananaw, hindi naman po tama ‘yung terminology na ‘mirroring’ or ‘adopting’ because as you know, you were here that day, halos sabay po kaming nag-submit ng pre-trial brief,” Poa told reporters.

“But again, it is a prerogative of either the defense or the prosecution to choose the witnesses and the pieces of documents that they will be presenting. So really, I don’t see the issue in that,” he added.

Poa said the defense is prepared to respond if the prosecution files any formal motion or manifestation regarding the matter.

He noted that the defense listed former senator Antonio Trillanes IV and Ramil Madriaga among its witnesses, saying they are intended to help dispute the allegations in the impeachment case.

The defense said the witnesses would be presented “to disprove the allegations in the Articles of Impeachment, establish that the allegations in the Articles of Impeachment are mere conclusions of law and fact” as well as to identify documents and prove other related matters.

Poa also said the pre-trial conference has been proceeding in an orderly manner, although he acknowledged that the process may extend beyond the initial schedule due to the volume of documents involved.

“We’re very hopeful na matapos natin ‘to but again, ang dami ng dokumento which is normal for a case such as this. Ine-expect natin baka hindi tayo matapos ngayong araw. Baka umabot hanggang bukas or even Thursday, which is the original schedule naman po of the pre-trial conference,” he said.

The Articles of Impeachment approved by the House for Senate trial accuse Duterte of culpable violation of the Constitution, graft and corruption, betrayal of public trust, bribery, and other high crimes.