Prosecution: Evidence enough vs Sara Duterte even if tax subpoena denied

MANILA, Philippines – Impeachment prosecutors have “enough evidence” to support their allegation that Vice President Sara Duterte amassed unexplained wealth in case the Senate shuts down their effort to summon the document as evidence in Duterte’s impeachment trial.

In a media briefing, prosecutor San Juan Rep. Ysabel Maria Zamora said the prosecutorial team can still present a compelling case to remove Duterte from office even if the impeachment court votes against its request to subpoena the vice president and her spouse’s bank and tax records.

“We have enough evidence to support each of the articles,” Zamora said, referring to the charges elevated by the House of Representatives to the Senate. “Even if we don’t have the documents that we are requesting for, we can support the prosecution of the four articles.”

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READ: Defense, prosecution start oral arguments on tax, bank records

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Duterte faces an impeachment trial over an array of accusations, including claims she misused hundreds of millions of pesos in confidential funds, ordering a hit on President Ferdinand Marcos, Jr., the First Lady, and his cousin, a former Speaker of the House, and bribing officials to skirt procurement rules.

Also included in the charges were allegations that she amassed unexplained wealth, fueled by alleged inconsistencies between her net worth statements – which reportedly showed she had tens of millions of pesos in assets – and an Anti-Money Laundering Council (AMLC) report indicating that billions had coursed through her accounts over the past two decades.

Prosecution legal spokesman Benjamin Tolosa, Jr., said their impeachment case is not hinged “on just one piece of evidence,” pointing to Duterte and her husband’s lawyer Maneses Carpio’s bank and tax records.

“We have a lot of documents that we will use to strengthen the charges,” he said in Filipino.

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A green cardboard box containing the Dutertes’ tax records was turned over by the Bureau of Internal Revenue (BIR) to the House committee on justice during its “clarificatory hearings” in April, though it remained sealed and was not examined by lawmakers. It was secured with tape and signed by BIR Commissioner Charlito Mendoza to prevent tampering. The tax records were returned by the Senate to the House for its custody and safekeeping last week.

Prosecutors consider the tax documents crucial in linking Duterte’s statements of assets, liabilities and net worth and the AMLC report on her bank transactions to allegations of unexplained wealth charged against her. /mr

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