𝐀𝐘𝐀𝐖 𝐆𝐀𝐒𝐓𝐔𝐒𝐈𝐍 𝐀𝐍𝐆 𝐏𝐄𝐑𝐀 𝐍𝐆 𝐓𝐀𝐔𝐌𝐁𝐀𝐘𝐀𝐍?

​𝐕𝐏 𝐒𝐀𝐑𝐀 𝐂𝐀𝐌𝐏 𝐖𝐀𝐍𝐓𝐒 𝐎𝐖𝐍 𝐄𝐐𝐔𝐈𝐏𝐌𝐄𝐍𝐓, 𝐂𝐀𝐓𝐄𝐑𝐄𝐑 𝐈𝐍𝐒𝐈𝐃𝐄 𝐒𝐄𝐍𝐀𝐓𝐄 𝐃𝐔𝐑𝐈𝐍𝐆 𝐈𝐌𝐏𝐄𝐀𝐂𝐇𝐌𝐄𝐍𝐓 𝐓𝐑𝐈𝐀𝐋

MANILA, Philippines — The Senate has allowed Vice President Sara Duterte's camp to bring its own equipment and hire its own caterer for its holding area during the ongoing impeachment trial.

Senate Secretary Renato Bantug said the request is a standard administrative matter and is not unusual in impeachment proceedings.

According to Bantug, the House prosecution panel also contracted its own caterer and brought in its own equipment for use during the trial.

He added that similar arrangements were made by both parties during previous impeachment trials, making the request consistent with past practice.

Bantug explained that the requests were raised by Office of the Vice President (OVP) Undersecretary Zuleika Lopez, who serves as Vice President Duterte's chief of staff, during her visit to the Senate.

Among the matters discussed was the seating arrangement for the defense panel. Bantug said the Senate had already allocated 45 seats for the defense team, as previously communicated.

Lopez's team also asked whether they could bring equipment such as a refrigerator and a coffee maker into their holding area. Bantug said the request was immediately approved.

The defense camp likewise sought permission to hire its own catering service, which the Senate also allowed.

In a statement, the Office of the Vice President clarified that the requested equipment and catering services were intended not only for Vice President Duterte but also for the entire defense team and members of the media covering the proceedings.