Prosecution lawyers handling allegations against Vice President Sara Z. Duterte plan to perform a detailed comparative audit during upcoming trial proceedings, matching her official asset declarations against bank records and related financial documents.
Panel spokesperson Atty. Jay Tolosa, who also acts as private counsel for the prosecution, confirmed over the weekend that state counsel will examine whether the Vice President’s declared net worth aligns with her verifiable income streams.
“Kailangan natin gawin diyan ‘pag ikumpara iyung mga kabuuang yaman na nakadeklara sa SALN,” he added.
The financial probe stems from court testimony showing that the Vice President’s net worth, as reported in her Statements of Assets, Liabilities, and Net Worth (SALNs), surged from P7.2 million in 2007, during her tenure as Davao City vice mayor, to roughly P98 million in 2025.
Prosecution attorneys intend to analyze whether this P98-million total corresponds with her tax records, government salary, and outside corporate earnings.
“Kailangan natin makita itong P98 million, magtutugma ba ‘to doon sa kita na dineklara doon sa tax filings, sa kanyang mga naging sweldo bilang kawani ng gobyerno at kung meron pa siyang ibang financial interest sa businesses kung kumita,” he added.
Tolosa emphasized that prosecutors are placing particular scrutiny on the rapid expansion of her personal wealth since she assumed the vice presidency, as this period forms the core of the unexplained wealth charge.
Official figures indicate her net worth grew by over P30 million between 2022 and 2025 alone.
‘Tutugma ba ‘yan kapag tinagnan ‘yung ibang financial records niya, katulad ng mga bank accounts, financial transactions, even other official government records?” he asked.
Evidentiary Strategy
Addressing procedural plans, Tolosa stated that the prosecution will not call additional witnesses to authenticate the Vice President’s SALNs submitted by the Office of the Ombudsman, noting that “these are official government records.”
Instead, prosecutors plan to summon representatives from the specific banking institutions that transmitted financial records to the Impeachment Court to formally substantiate the account data.