House impeachment prosecutors intend to expand their examination of Vice President Sara Z. Duterte’s financial records, aiming to determine whether she had additional legitimate income streams to account for the substantial growth in her declared net worth.
The strategy was disclosed by Bukidnon Representative Jonathan Keith Flores, a member of the House Impeachment Prosecution Panel, who explained that prosecutors will go beyond examining corporate records to demonstrate a lack of alternative lawful revenue.
“So we will also go into other parts, like let’s say, are there any other sources of income that may have contributed to the growth of her net worth?” Flores stated in an interview.
“Ipapakita din namin na walang other sources of income. So paano siya nag-increase at paano lumobo?” he added.
Building Article II Through Financial Baselines
Prosecution trial strategy for Article II focuses on comparing Duterte’s official Statements of Assets, Liabilities, and Net Worth (SALN) against her government salary, corporate filings, tax documents, and business earnings. Records presented before the Senate of the PhilippinesClick to open side panel for more information show her declared net worth rising from P7.25 million upon entering public office in 2007 to approximately P98.66 million in 2025.
The Senate sitting as an Impeachment Court has ruled that financial records predating her vice presidency will serve strictly as a baseline, as impeachable offenses must pertain to her tenure as Vice President.
“We will not end there. ’Yun pa lang ’yung basis namin na ito ’yung corporations, ito ’yung na-declare, ito ’yung income at kinita ng mga corporation,” Flores explained regarding the utility of corporate baseline filings.
Recent testimony from Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) officials revealed that corporate records for multiple companies declared by Duterte and her husband showed no dividend payouts, with several entities reporting financial losses.
Flores characterized the corporate records as an initial component of a broader evidentiary showcase that prosecutors plan to connect as the trial progresses.
“For unexplained wealth, ang na-establish ko lang so far, we’re trying to build it by blocks, kasi, you know, we’re trying to present this part, that part, but it will all be connected later on,” Flores noted.
“But what has been clearly established is that the corporations declared by the Vice President in her SALN have not been doing well financially. I mean, most of them were declaring losses, and these are the corporations that were declared by the Vice President in her SALN,” he maintained.
The House prosecution panel bears the burden of proving through competent evidence that the Vice President’s lawful earnings were insufficient to cover her accumulated net worth, while the defense will have the opportunity to present its counter-evidence and explanations.