Vice President Sara Duterte-Carpio on Aug. 19 called for a speedier resolution of her impeachment trial as the Senate impeachment court canceled proceedings for a second straight day because of bad weather, only to draw a pointed rebuttal from the prosecution panel questioning her own record of transparency.
"I am giving my full trust to our defense team, and we simply want the process to move faster because our proceedings cannot be allowed to drag on," Duterte said in Filipino, according to an interview transcript her office shared with reporters, as reported by BusinessWorld. "People are wondering whether it is true that I did something wrong, or whether the accusations are true. So, the process should be fast because our Constitution provides for speedy administration."
Trial now three days behind schedule
The cancellations followed the 16th trial day on Aug. 17, when the House prosecution panel presented former Office of the Vice President (OVP) special disbursing officer Gina Acosta as a witness. Impeachment court spokesperson Reginald Tongol said the proceedings are now roughly two to three days behind schedule. Party-list Rep. James Mark Terry Ridon, representing the prosecution, said the House panel shares Duterte's interest in moving quickly. "The prosecution will therefore seek to present all its evidence and witnesses at the earliest possible time, so the defense can also present its evidence and witnesses and, ultimately, allow the court to issue a ruling," Ridon told reporters via a Viber group chat, as reported by BusinessWorld.
Prosecution: "Where did she spend the funds?"
Hours after Duterte's remarks, prosecution counsel Lorna Kapunan told reporters during an online briefing that Duterte's call for government-wide transparency should apply first to her own office, according to the Philippine Daily Inquirer. Kapunan noted the OVP had a total budget of ₱2.3 billion in 2023, including confidential funds, and said the office has yet to account for how those funds were used. "Where did she spend the funds under her? That is where we require transparency," Kapunan said. She argued that if OVP followers claimed confidential funds were spent on medicine, food, and groceries, those are not proper uses of confidential funds and should instead have been drawn from the office's much larger pool of regular funds.
Kapunan's remarks followed Duterte's own call, made the same week, for Malacañang to disclose the travel authorities and expenses of government officials, after the Palace publicized her canceled six-day personal trip to Japan that had been scheduled to begin Aug. 19. Duterte announced Aug. 18 that she had already changed her plans. Prosecution spokesperson Robert Ace Barbers defended the Palace's disclosure of the trip, telling reporters that the public "has a right to know" the whereabouts of officials "particularly during disasters and other emergencies," referencing the concurrent Habagat flooding. Duterte has made repeated trips abroad in recent years, including visits related to her father former President Rodrigo Duterte's detention at the International Criminal Court.
Context: COA findings and prior testimony
The exchange builds on testimony already before the impeachment court. A state auditor testified earlier this month that ₱375 million in OVP confidential funds were left unliquidated in a manner that, under Commission on Audit guidelines, creates a legal presumption the money was used for personal benefit. Acosta separately testified that Duterte personally ordered the release of ₱125 million in confidential funds to a security aide in 2022 with no itemized purpose and no COA provision authorizing the disbursement, as Pulpulitiko has previously reported. Duterte's office has not issued a line-by-line public accounting of the disputed confidential fund disbursements as of this report, and the impeachment court has not set a revised date to make up the lost trial days.
Sources:
- Sara wants faster impeachment trial — BusinessWorld, Aug. 19, 2026
- Prosecution to Sara Duterte: Transparency? Start with yourself — Philippine Daily Inquirer, Aug. 19, 2026
- VP impeachment trial canceled today — Philstar.com, Aug. 19, 2026