Calm Chel Diokno says years of litigation, teaching help amid pressure

Akbayan party-list Representative and House prosecution panel member Chel Diokno (INQUIRER file photo) MANILA, Philippines — How does Akbayan party-list Rep. Chel Diokno remain calm and maintain his composure during a high-stakes, pivotal impeachment trial discussion on documents that may decide the fate of Vice President Sara Duterte? It appears that having a ‘little’ experience from over three decades of litigation would help. In a press briefing on Tuesday, Diokno, a member of the House of Representatives prosecution panel — was asked how he was able to keep his cool demeanor despite intense arguments on their request to subpoena Duterte’s bank and tax records. Article continues after this advertisement According to the lawmaker, facing different courts and the Supreme Court helped him. “I can say that I have a little experience in terms of arguing in front of the Supreme Court and other courts in our country,” he said in Filipino. “And that probably helps me a lot. I have practiced for almost 36 years; I lived inside courtrooms, so maybe that’s where I was able to get what I should do before the impeachment court,” he added. Prior to becoming a House lawmaker, Diokno made two unsuccessful attempts for a Senate seat — in 2019 and 2022. Many observers, however, deemed Diokno to be one of the more decorated senatorial candidates, being a long-time human rights lawyer and a former chairperson of the Free Legal Assistance Group. Article continues after this advertisement Diokno has a Bachelor of Arts in Philosophy degree from the University of the Philippines – Diliman, and after this, he went to Northern Illinois University, where he obtained his Juris Doctor of Laws degree. He was admitted to the bar in Illinois in 1986, and in the Philippines by 1988. Years later, Diokno became the founding dean of the De La Salle University (DLSU) College of Law. Article continues after this advertisement READ: Chel Diokno who? Despite being a veteran of many court battles, Diokno admitted that standing for a long time while arguing their position is tiring. “It’s a big challenge and it’s tiring to stand for several hours,” he said. Since the start of oral arguments on the prosecution’s request for a subpoena last Wednesday, Diokno has earned praise for his cool, clear manner of presenting their position. Over social media, several memes have been created by netizens praising Diokno for his well-thought-out answers to the questions from senator-judges and the arguments from defense lawyers. Last Wednesday, Presiding Officer and Senator-judge Francis Escudero lauded Diokno and his counterpart from the defense, lawyer Michael Poa, for being calm, gentlemanly, and respectful during their debate. Diokno and Poa were seen shaking hands after raising their arguments. READ: Escudero lauds Poa, Diokno for ‘calm’ oral arguments on VP’s tax records “Schooled”, “Mismatch“ After the oral arguments, the Senate Impeachment Court decided in favor of the prosecution team, ordering the issuance of a subpoena on the bank documents and tax records of Duterte and her husband, Manases Carpio, save for some companies which did not show any prima facie links to the Vice President. As the prosecution’s supporters celebrated the win, several more memes were made — including one which claimed that it is still a mismatch to pit Diokno against three lawyers. The three lawyers were identified as Poa, and Senator-judges Alan Peter Cayetano and Pia Cayetano. Other memes depicted Diokno as a professor who supposedly brought the three lawyers to school. While it is true that Diokno used to be a law professor, the lawmaker said he would rather let these memes just be as they are. “I won’t pay attention to this; I would rather just let that be. What I can say is that in terms of — because many are asking me about court demeanor, as to where it came from — well, aside from being a court practitioner for many, many years, I was also a teacher for over 20 years,” Diokno said. After the Senate’s decision on Monday, Diokno said that the court’s decision is a victory for the Filipino people, adding that it was a “well-reasoned ruling.” READ: Diokno: Senate subpoena on Duterte finance docs a ‘victory’ for people Your subscription could not be saved. Please try again. Your subscription has been successful. Diokno also said that the defense should stop claiming that the prosecution is engaged in a “fishing expedition” as the request for a subpoena targeted specific documents — noting that fishing expeditions only happen when one side seeks documents wishing that they chance upon incriminating or damning evidence. /gsg