Law prof cites 'independence' in declining role as Sara witness

Law professor Ralph Sarmiento has declined to testify for Vice President Sara Duterte’s defense in her impeachment trial, saying he wants to preserve his independence as a constitutional law scholar and the impartiality of his legal opinions.

In a statement Thursday, Sarmiento said he had not expected his views, which he regularly shares on social media, to potentially become part of the impeachment proceedings.

“After careful consideration, I have decided to decline participation as a witness in the proceedings. This is a personal decision to preserve the independence of my constitutional law scholarship and the impartiality of my legal views and opinions,” he said.

He thanked Duterte’s defense team for recognizing the value of his legal and constitutional views but said participating in the proceedings could compromise the independence of his scholarship.

Sarmiento said he had already contacted the defense team to request the withdrawal of its subpoena request or, if the subpoena had already been issued, to seek its recall from the impeachment court.

Defense spokesperson Michael Poa said the panel respected Sarmiento’s decision.

“We respect Dean Sarmiento’s personal decision and appreciate his initial consideration of our invitation,” Poa said in a statement.

Poa added that the defense had already submitted its list of witnesses for the first week of hearings to the impeachment court in compliance with the five-day notice requirement.

The impeachment trial is set to resume Monday, with the defense presenting its evidence against the remaining unexplained wealth charge after prosecutors withdrew three of the four articles of impeachment against Duterte.

Sarmiento was supposed to be the defense panel’s first witness when the Senate impeachment court resumes proceedings on 9 November. The defense had asked the court to subpoena him to discuss constitutional and legal principles relevant to the impeachment case, particularly Article II, which concerns Duterte’s alleged unexplained wealth.

Sarmiento is a law professor at the University of St. La Salle College of Law and a former dean of its College of Law.