Manila: Prosecution witness lawyer Karen Batu of the Office of the Ombudsman (OMB) on Tuesday confirmed that Vice President Sara Z. Duterte did not declare any cash in her statement of assets, liabilities, and net worth (SALNs) for 2019 to 2025.
According to Philippines News Agency, under direct examination by prosecution counsel James Bryan Ibrahim Alih, Batu, officer-in-charge of the Central Records Division of the OMB, told the impeachment court that the Vice President did not declare any 'cash in hand or in bank' for 2019. Batu testified that similar declarations were made for subsequent years, stating, "For 2021, 2022, 2023, 2024, and 2025, wala pong naka-declare na (there were no declared) cash on hand and in bank."
Before discussing the 2019 to 2025 SALNs, Batu reviewed Duterte's financial disclosures from 2007 to 2018, when she served as Davao City vice mayor and then mayor. During these years, Duterte declared various cash amounts, starting with PHP2 million in 2007 and rising to PHP6,368,596 in 2017, before slightly reducing to PHP3,795,000 in 2018. Her net worth reportedly increased from over PHP7 million in 2007 to PHP88.5 million in 2024.
Duterte also declared business interests in her SALNs without listing corresponding shares of stock or acquisition costs, Batu testified. The prosecution reviewed Duterte's SALNs from 2007 to 2025 under Article II of the Articles of Impeachment. Batu specified that from 2007 to 2012 and again from 2016 to 2021, Duterte did not declare any shares of stock or acquisition costs despite listing business interests.
The prosecution then examined Duterte's current term as vice president, where her 2022 SALN continued to list several business interests but lacked declared shares of stock or acquisition costs. The same issue persisted in the 2024 and 2025 SALNs.
Batu's testimony followed the presentation by retired Sandiganbayan Presiding Justice Amparo Cabotaje-Tang, who elaborated on the legal requirements for SALN submissions, including the need to declare personal properties like shares of stock with their acquisition cost. House prosecutors are investigating whether Duterte's sworn declarations accurately disclosed the financial value of her business interests and whether these entries align with corporate and other financial records under Article II.
