AFP Witness in Sara Duterte Impeachment Trial Identified

Philippine Army (PA) official Col. Manaros Boransing II took the witness stand on Tuesday after the Senate impeachment court ordered him to testify in Vice President Sara Duterte’s trial. But who is Boransing, and why is he a witness? The Senate impeachment court is not the first time Boransing has been asked about Duterte’s confidential funds. A retired military official, Boransing previously appeared before the House committee on good government and public accountability during its inquiry into Duterte’s confidential funds in 2024. According to Batangas Rep. Gerville Luistro, Boransing was called to testify during the panel’s hearing on the Commission on Audit’s (COA) disallowance of P15.54 million out of the Department of Education’s (DepEd) P112.5 million in confidential expenses in 2023 due to a lack of supporting documents. The P15.54 million was part of the P75 million initially flagged by COA for lack of documentation. To justify the P15.54 million in expenses to COA, DepEd presented certification letters from the military stating that the funds had been used for the Youth Leadership Summit (YLS). The YLS is an ongoing Armed Forces of the Philippines (AFP) program that engages young people in various training activities aimed at developing leadership skills. Boransing was among the Army officials who provided the certificates. However, he said he was unaware that the certificates would be used to justify DepEd’s expenses before COA. Then-DepEd spokesperson Michael Poa told the House panel that he had asked DepEd Undersecretary and retired Major General Nolasco Mempin to request the certificates from the military. Poa stressed that there was no malice involved, saying he assumed there had already been coordination between the two agencies. Mempin later testified that he was unaware of the purpose of the certifications. He said Boransing and the other military officials from whom he requested certificates were his classmates at the Philippine Military Academy. Boransing, however, said the military would not have issued the certificates if there had been no actual participation by a representative in the YLS. — MCG, GMA News