PH
Private prosecutor Amando Ligutan on Wednesday maintained that his social media post about misleading questions during the impeachment trial was not personal and was simply about the law that lawyers must follow.On the 19th day of the impeachment trial of Vice President Sara Duterte, Ligutan explained that, as a teacher for almost 20 years, he felt the need to correct what he believed was wrong.
“Why post it on Facebook? Your honors, why not? Yes, I am a lawyer, but more than just a lawyer, first and foremost, I am a teacher,” he said.
“Ang pagtuturo, ang pagtatama ng mali, ay walang pinipiling lugar at walang pinipiling panahon (teaching and correcting what’s wrong pick no specific place or time). That’s why I made that post—I was concerned that a statement made in open court that misleading questions are allowed will go unchecked. My teacher's instinct kicked in,” he added.
Ligutan also told the defense, apparently referring to lawyer Kristine Ferrer, that the “post is not about you.”
“It’s not personal; it is about the law that we all adhere to. It is about what we teach the public who are watching our trial,” he said.
“Correcting a mistake is never wrong. Doing it while a hearing is ongoing online does not make it not right. Ang pagtatama ng mali ay hindi kailanman ipinagbabawal, kahit sa loob ng impeachment court na ito (correcting what’s wrong is never prohibited, even within this impeachment court),” he continued.
Ligutan was referring to his Facebook post on August 12, which read: “A principle all lawyers and law students know by heart: Misleading questions are not allowed even on cross-examination.”
This was posted shortly after Ferrer and private prosecutor Lorna Kapunan exchanged words regarding the limitations to cross-examination, particularly when it comes to asking misleading questions.
The Vice President’s lead counsel, Sheila Sison, later condemned Ligutan’s social media post regarding misleading questions while the trial was ongoing.
Ligutan, in response, said that his intentions were not malicious.
Senate impeachment court presiding officer Francis Escudero back then called on Ferrer and Kapunan to temper their words, saying their apparent generational gap should not fuel tension in the proceedings.
Following Ligutan’s manifestation on Wednesday, Escudero made a ruling barring senator-judges, as well as counsels of both the prosecution and the defense, from speaking on the merits of the impeachment case against the Vice President.
The presiding officer said the ruling is prospective, meaning it will only cover those statements made after the ruling was announced on August 26.
Source: GMA News
Date posted: August 26, 2026 11:15am