Poa steps aside ahead of testimony
‘He is on deck. Considering that Attorney Poa is going to be presented in the impeachment court, common etiquette and proper decorum dictate that we respect the impeachment court.’
‘He is on deck. Considering that Attorney Poa is going to be presented in the impeachment court, common etiquette and proper decorum dictate that we respect the impeachment court.’
Lawyer Michael Poa has stepped aside as spokesperson for Vice President Sara Duterte’s defense team and has been separated from her lawyers ahead of his testimony as a hostile prosecution witness in her impeachment trial, the defense said on Tuesday.
Defense deputy spokesperson Justin Nicol Gular said Poa was no longer staying in the defense team’s holding room and has instead been placed in the holding area for subpoenaed witnesses.
“He is on deck. Considering that Attorney Poa is going to be presented in the impeachment court, common etiquette and proper decorum dictate that we respect the impeachment court,” Gular told reporters after Tuesday’s proceedings.
Poa is set to testify on Wednesday on the Department of Education’s handling of confidential funds during Duterte’s tenure as education secretary. The prosecution said Poa should explain why certifications from Philippine Army officers were used to support documents to account for confidential fund expenditures.
Gular said he last spoke with Poa last week, when they were sitting together as members of the defense panel. Since Poa’s witness status was established, Gular said, the two have had no communication.
“Let’s just wait for his testimony,” Gular said, declining to comment further because it could touch on the merits of the case.
