Duterte-Linked Firm Awarded P35.9M in State Contracts Post-Inauguration, Senate Told

A COMPANY listed by Vice-President Sara Duterte-Carpio among her business interests received 49 government contracts worth P35.9 million after she assumed office in 2022, a state procurement official told the Senate impeachment court on Tuesday. Philippine Government Electronic Procurement System (PhilGEPS) division chief Rendell P. Sopeña testified that GenCorp Industries, Inc. received contracts from the Davao City government, Philippine Health Insurance Corp. (PhilHealth) Region XI and the Overseas Workers Welfare Administration (OWWA) Region XI. The Davao City government awarded 15 contracts worth P34.22 million, accounting for about 95% of the P35.88-million total. PhilHealth Region XI awarded 33 contracts worth P1.33 million, while OWWA Region XI awarded one worth P330,000. All 49 contracts in the PhilGEPS records were awarded between July 21, 2022 and June 2026. Ms. Duterte assumed office as Vice-President on June 30, 2022. GenCorp was listed among Ms. Duterte’s business interests in her 2024 and 2025 statements of assets, liabilities and net worth (SALN). Her name, however, does not appear in GenCorp’s corporate records submitted to the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC), SEC Company Registration and Monitoring Department Director Gerardo F. del Rosario testified earlier. Mr. Sopeña presented five USB drives containing data and summaries covering the contracts, as well as printed procurement records. The material consisted of 231 documents totaling 481 pages. House of Representatives lead prosecutor Gerville R. Luistro asked for a 10-minute recess to allow the prosecution and defense to examine the records, which she said both sides were seeing for the first time. Mr. Sopeña’s testimony followed the presentation of SEC records on companies associated with Ms. Duterte and her husband, Manases “Mans” R. Carpio. Earlier on Tuesday, the prosecution identified an incorporator, shareholder and chairman of companies linked to Ms. Duterte as a former special envoy to China appointed by her father, former President Rodrigo R. Duterte. Responding to a question from Senator-Judge Erwin T. Tulfo, prosecution lawyer Erwin G. Matib said the initials “JTC” in JTC Group of Companies Philippines, Inc. stand for Jaime Tan Cruz. The businessman served as a special envoy to China for trade and investments during the Duterte administration. Mr. Cruz’s name surfaced during Mr. del Rosario’s testimony a day earlier. “The name of Jaime T. Cruz comes out in [documents related] to Metro City Chow Foods Corp. based on the articles of incorporation,” Mr. del Rosario said. SEC records identified Mr. Cruz as an incorporator of Metro City Chow Foods Corp. and six other companies: City Hall King Chow Foods Corp., Davao Bounty Times Foods Corp., Davao Emerging Taipans Corp., Davao New Royal Taipans Corp., Great Jolly Times Foods Corp. and JTC Group of Companies Philippines, Inc. Mr. Cruz was also listed as the biggest subscriber of Metro City Chow Foods and GenCorp, with subscriptions of 1,997 and 6,250 shares, respectively. Ms. Duterte declared interests in Metro City Chow Foods and GenCorp in her SALNs. BusinessWorld sought comment from JTC Group by telephone and mobile phone calls, but company employees declined to comment. Mr. del Rosario separately testified that the SEC has no guidelines requiring it to report government officials who hold interests in private companies. “If an official establishes a company or becomes part of a company, we do not have guidelines [specifying] that we need to report them to the OP (Office of the President), the Senate, the House or the Judiciary or the Ombudsman to flag these people,” he said. Defense lawyer Justin Nicol B. Gular questioned Mr. del Rosario’s competence to determine whether Ms. Duterte’s business interests and income constituted a conflict of interest under the Code of Conduct and Ethical Standards for Public Officials and Employees. Mr. del Rosario said SEC records did not provide information about the day-to-day management of the companies by Ms. Duterte or her husband. He also said available corporate records, including stock and transfer books and general information sheets, did not show Ms. Duterte transferring or divesting shares. Mr. del Rosario said the SEC records alone could not establish what had actually occurred within the companies. He maintained, however, that government officials should know the legal restrictions that apply to them. “It is clear in the law that there is a prohibition [against doing business], and [Ms. Duterte] should have known, as a government official, that she swore an oath to act as Vice-President, that those are her limitations,” he said. “So, before she took the oath, she should have already removed herself or divested.”