THE House Prosecution Panel has officially appointed veteran litigator and human rights advocate Atty. Antonio Audie Z. Bucoy as spokesperson for the impeachment prosecution team in the upcoming Senate trial of Vice President Sara Duterte.
Bucoy, a respected lawyer with over four decades of experience, is a graduate of the University of the Philippines College of Law. He accepted the role after being approached by colleagues from the panel, citing a deep sense of duty to the nation.
He will represent both public and private prosecutors in all official communications during the Senate trial.
“Ako po ang tagapagsalita o spokesperson ng prosecution panel. Wala pong distinction. Magkasama po diyan ang public prosecutors at ang private prosecutors,” Bucoy said Tuesday during a press conference introducing him to the media.
Bucoy said he was moved to accept the role out of a deep sense of public duty.
“Ano ang nag-udyok sa akin na tanggapin ito? Para ho sa bayan. Kinausap ako ng ilang kaibigan na nasa prosecution panel, and sa palagay nila ako ay makakatulong para ilahad sa taumbayan kung ano ang sinusugo ng prosecution. Tinanggap ko po after talking to my family,” he explained.
Bucoy said his participation in the historic proceedings is entirely pro bono.
“Hindi ko na po kinakailangan ng bayad. Para ho sa bayan ‘to. Hindi ho bayad, bayan,” he stressed.
Bucoy is a managing partner of Bucoy, Poblador and Associates Law Offices and a longtime professor of corporate and remedial law.
He is a member of two of the country’s most prominent legal advocacy groups — the Free Legal Assistance Group (FLAG) and the Movement of Attorneys for Brotherhood, Integrity and Nationalism Inc. (MABINI).
Both organizations are known for their work on human rights and public interest cases.
House prosecutors are expected to present their case against Vice President Duterte in the coming weeks, after she was impeached in February.
The impeachment complaint cited, among others, allegations of culpable violation of the Constitution, betrayal of public trust, and misuse of confidential and intelligence funds during her concurrent tenure as Education Secretary in 2022 and 2023.
Bucoy’s appointment is seen as a move to strengthen the prosecution’s credibility and show its commitment to a transparent impeachment trial.
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