The House prosecution panel has formally received the bank and tax records of Vice President Sara Z. Duterte, her husband Atty. Manases Carpio, and their associated business entities, securing what lawmakers describe as a crucial batch of financial evidence for the ongoing Senate impeachment trial.
House prosecutor and Bicol Saro Party-list Rep. Terry Ridon confirmed that the documents were officially turned over to the panel on September 2. Ridon, who leads the prosecution team handling Impeachment Article II concerning alleged unexplained wealth, stated that investigators are already scrutinizing the records to build their case.
“So, sa mga susunod na mga araw pag-aaralan at bubusisiin namin ‘yung lahat ng mga dokumentong ito. At ito ‘yung nag-constitute nung last important pillar nung mga ebidensya na gagamitin para sa unexplained wealth article,” Ridon told reporters during a press briefing.
The House Committee on Justice had previously reviewed the bank accounts of the Vice President and her husband during initial hearings but was unable to inspect their tax filings due to legal questions surrounding the conditions for public disclosure.
Ridon noted that the prosecution is actively evaluating whether to skip the presentation of Impeachment Article III, which involves bribery and procurement irregularities within the Department of Education and proceed straight to Article II.
“Naghahanda na rin ‘yung unexplained wealth team para doon sa pagpasok na ng aming article, at we also acknowledge na there are conversations as to ‘yung pagtutuloy ng bribery or hindi pagtutuloy ng bribery at pagdiretso na sa unexplained wealth article,” Ridon explained.
The prosecution expressed high confidence in the strength of its findings for Impeachment Articles IV and I, which cover alleged grave threats and inciting to sedition, as well as the misuse of confidential funds, respectively.
Seeking to expedite the overall trial proceedings, Ridon expressed his personal view that the unexplained wealth article offers a more compelling case than the bribery charges, though no final consensus has been made by the leadership.
“Mahalaga sa publiko at sa amin ‘yung matapos na sa pinakamaagang panahon ‘yung presentation of evidence at ‘yung kailangan nating pagpasya kung ano ba ‘yung pinaka-compelling na mga articles as of today,” Ridon said.
He projected that the team will be ready to submit its evidence to the Senate Impeachment Court around mid- to late September.
“We will decide it in due time, pero as far as the unexplained wealth team is concerned, naghahanda na kami para pag-pasok ng gitna o hanggang dulo nung Setyembre, eh pwede na kaming mag-latag ng ebidensya sa Senate Impeachment Court,” he added. “So pag-aaralan namin ang lahat ng mga bank accounts at tax documents ni Vice President Sara Duterte, ng kanyang asawa at ng kanyang mga kumpanya para makita natin kung mag-constitute ba ito pong mga ebidensya na ito para patunayan ‘yung mga alegasyon sa unexplained wealth article po which would constitute the betrayal of public trust.”