The House prosecution panel turned the spotlight on Vice President Sara Duterte’s direct role in handling P112.5 million in Department of Education (DepEd) confidential funds on Monday, introducing 13 proposed stipulations meant to spare an ailing key witness from testifying in the ongoing impeachment trial.
Private prosecutor Atty. Rey Robles presented the proposals during the morning proceedings, citing the health condition of former DepEd special disbursing officer Edward Fajarda. Fajarda recently suffered a stroke, prompting Senate medical staff to mandate two weeks of rest through September 3, with his appearance rescheduled for September 7.
“Your Honor, we are making this request for stipulation out of due consideration for the health and well-being of Mr. Fajarda,” Robles stated.
Defense counsel Atty. Lindon Miguel C. Bacquel accepted the initial two stipulations that Duterte appointed Fajarda as DepEd’s special disbursing officer for confidential funds in 2023 and that Fajarda personally encashed three checks totaling P112.5 million. The checks, valued at P37.5 million each, were dated February 20, April 19, and July 11, 2023. Both sides entered the checks and corresponding disbursement vouchers as common exhibits.
Friction arose over the third proposal regarding Fajarda’s physical transfer of the money to Col. Dennis Nolasco, then deputy commander of the Vice President Security and Protection Group. Robles argued the transfer could not be formally labeled a “disbursement” without supporting receipts.
“He said that he turned it over. He did not say disbursed, Your Honor,” Robles emphasized, citing Fajarda’s testimony before the House.
Bacquel countered using transcripts from a November 25, 2024 hearing, insisting Fajarda had characterized the transaction as a disbursement. Presiding Officer Senator Francis Escudero stepped in, proposing the record state that Nolasco received the funds while leaving the legal definition for the court to interpret.
“I can confirm that as of now, no evidence has been presented that it was received by Mr. Nolasco,” Escudero noted.
The fourth stipulation sought to explicitly connect the fund transfer to direct instructions from Duterte. After Robles pointed to video evidence of Fajarda’s testimony, Bacquel requested additional time to review the exact phrasing against existing records.
The defense agreed to several subsequent proposals, including Joint Circular No. 2015-01 governing confidential funds, sworn certifications signed under oath by both Fajarda and Duterte, and accomplishment and liquidation reports signed by the Vice President.
Regarding Fajarda’s direct involvement, Bacquel offered refined language for the eighth proposal, stating that “Edward Fajarda has no personal knowledge on the implementation of confidential operations where the confidential funds was utilized.”
However, defense counsel flatly rejected the twelfth proposal, which sought to accept documents identified by former Commission on Audit (COA) auditor Atty. Roderick C. Wamil without requiring further authentication from Fajarda. “We did not stipulate on item 12,” Bacquel clarified.
The panel also deferred on the final proposal, which sought to classify Fajarda’s potential testimony as cumulative or corroborative of evidence already on record
“Your Honor, if I may be given the chance to confer with the public prosecutors in this regard, we will manifest this afternoon,” Robles said.
The prosecution panel has not yet formally withdrawn its subpoena for Fajarda. Presiding Officer Escudero said the court will only recall the subpoena once a formal withdrawal is submitted.