House elects prosecutors for VP Duterte's impeachment trial

The House of Representatives has elected an 11-member prosecution panel that will represent it in the Senate impeachment trial of Vice President Sara Duterte.

The panel—composed of senior House leaders, lawyers, former prosecutors, constitutional experts, and human rights advocates from both blocs—will present the Articles of Impeachment and evidence in line with House impeachment rules.

Get to know them below:

Rep. Gerville Luistro

Luistro was elected in 2022 under the Nationalist People’s Coalition. Her committee memberships include agriculture and food, human rights, and justice, among others. She's the Chairperson of the House Committee on Justice and a notable member of the "Quad Committee" investigating the war on drugs and Philippine Offshore Gaming Operators.

Rep. Jonathan Keith Flores

Flores has been sitting as Bukidnon 2nd district representative since 2019. Some of the measures he filed were the abolishment of PAGCOR and privatizing its casinos, and penalizing unauthorized practice of law, among others. He has been a vocal critic of Duterte, saying in 2024 that her alleged death threat against President Ferdinand Marcos Jr. should be investigated for possible criminal liability. He's a vice chairperson of the House Committee on Justice and chairperson of the House Committee on Dangerous Drugs,

Rep. Bel Zamora

Zamora is San Juan's lone district representative. Her house bills focus on senior citizens, persons with disabilities, education, and good governance, among others. She's also among the House justice committee vice chairpersons.

Rep. Lorenz Defensor

Defensor has been serving as the Iloilo 3rd district rep. since 2019. Also serving as Senior Deputy Majority Leader of the House, he co-authored the controversial Maharlika Investment Fund bill in 2022 and voted in favor of the absolute divorce bill in 2024. 

Rep. Joel Chua

Chua has been serving as Manila's 3rd district rep. since 2022. Some of his authored laws and bills include Free College Entrance Examinations Act and the Fuel Price Stabilization and Energy Security Act, which aims to return power to the state amid rising fuel prices. He's also the chairperson of the committee of good governance and public accountability.

Rep. Leila de Lima

De Lima served as justice secretary from 2010 to 2015 and later as senator from 2016 to 2022. She was detained for nearly seven years before being released on bail in 2023. In 2024, she was acquitted of all drug-related charges after the prosecution failed to prove guilt beyond a reasonable doubt in her final case.

Rep. Chel Diokno

Diokno is a human rights lawyer and the chairperson of Free Legal Assistance Group. He has been seated as an Akbayan party-list representative since 2025. He previously worked as one of the private prosecutors during the impeachment proceedings against former president Joseph Estrada.

Rep. Terry Ridon

Ridon serves as the Bicol Saro party-list rep. He is the chairperson of the Committee of Public Accounts. On April 20, he shared a COA notice of disallowance over three P125-million cash advances released by the OVP under Duterte in 2023. Early in May, he also filed a resolution urging a House inquiry into alleged “disinformation operations” by Peanut Gallery Media Network over posts on electricity bill hikes.

Rep. Rodge Gutierrez

Gutierrez was elected in 2022 as 1-Rider party-list representative. He made headlines in 2024 during Alice Guo's case, where he pointed out that she was lying about her age, revealing that he personally knows some of Guo's classmates at Grace Christian School. Some of the House bills he principally authored include HB 3412, or an act regulating the operations of motorcycle-for-hire and HB 3410 or an act creating a unified approach to traffic enforcement, including the formulation and approval of the No Contact Apprehension Policy. 

Rep. Kaka Bag-ao

Bag-ao is the lone district rep. of Dinagat Islands. A human rights lawyer, her bills include reinstituting absolute divorce, inclusive education, entrepreneurship, and employment for 4Ps members, and the amendment of the labor code to establish a uniform national minimum wage system.

Rep. Lordan Suan

Suan has been sitting as Cagayan de Oro 1st district rep. since 2022. He is the chairperson of the committee on public information, and vice chairperson for public accounts and micro, small, and medium enterprise development. His bills include pushing for stronger protection of children against rising online sexual exploitation, a Magna Carta for out-of-school youth, and bill seeking lifetime validity of PWD IDs.