Marcos to Weigh Releasing Duterte's Tax Records for Impeachment Trial

PRESIDENT Ferdinand "Bongbong" Marcos, Jr. will study whether to authorize the release of Vice-President Sara Duterte-Carpio’s tax records if the Senate requests access to them for her impeachment trial, Malacañang said on Monday. Palace Press Officer Clarissa A. Castro said the Office of the President has not received a request from the Senate to open a sealed Bureau of Internal Revenue (BIR) “green box” containing the income tax returns of Ms. Duterte and her husband, Manases R. Carpio. “No request or letter has been submitted to the President yet,” Ms. Castro told a news briefing in Filipino. “Once the request reaches him, it will be studied, and we will see what action the President will take.” The box contains the confidential tax records of the Vice-President and her husband. House prosecutors sought to use the documents as evidence in support of allegations of unexplained wealth, but Senate impeachment court presiding officer Francis Joseph “Chiz” G. Escudero ordered the records returned to the BIR on July 6, citing Section 71 of the National Internal Revenue Code, which bars their disclosure without presidential authorization or a voluntary waiver. Senator Panfilo M. Lacson has said presidential approval would be required before the Senate could examine the records during the impeachment proceedings. Asked about the relevance of the tax records, Ms. Castro said legitimate documents that could help establish the facts should be considered. “All documents, particularly legitimate ones, can be considered important in establishing the truth,” she said. The fourth day of the impeachment trial saw National Bureau of Investigation (NBI) Regional Director Jeremy C. Lotoc take the stand as the prosecution’s second witness, following NBI Senior Agent John Mark Sta. Ana Calilung. Before Mr. Lotoc’s testimony concluded, Senator-Judge Paolo Benigno “Bam” A. Aquino IV questioned the defense over what he described as the absence of an explicit denial that the Vice-President had contracted someone to carry out the plan to kill the President, his wife and Leyte Rep. Ferdinand Martin G. Romualdez. “In all your answers, Mr. Vinluan, I don’t think I have seen that your client or the defense denied that the Vice-President has talked to someone to do all these things,” Mr. Aquino said. “Is it correct that this denial is not in your answers?” Defense lawyer Mark C. Vinluan rejected the senator’s characterization, saying the defense had denied all allegations in its answer before the impeachment court. “We deny it, your honor,” Mr. Vinluan said. “We will present evidence or counter-evidence.” Mr. Aquino then asked whether the defense had specifically denied that Ms. Duterte had contracted a person to carry out the killings, noting that its pleadings appeared to rely instead on freedom of expression to defend her statements. Mr. Vinluan maintained that the defense’s answer contained both general and specific denials. Earlier in the proceedings, prosecution lawyer Amando Virgil D. Ligutan questioned Mr. Lotoc about the NBI’s investigation, which concluded that the threats were “serious and real.” Seven video clips from Ms. Duterte’s media briefings, in which she uttered profanities directed at the President, were played before the impeachment court. Mr. Lotoc said the statements formed part of the NBI’s assessment of whether the threats were genuine. “It was very much a factor because we wanted to establish the intent of the Vice-President,” Mr. Lotoc said. “That intent is crucial in our investigation because we wanted to determine whether those utterances were merely the product of a temporary fit of anger.” Meanwhile, Ms. Castro dismissed claims by Davao City Mayor Sebastian “Baste” Z. Duterte that the impeachment case was part of a three-year political effort to prevent the Vice-President from seeking the presidency in 2028. “If that were true, she should have exercised greater care in the use of confidential funds,” Ms. Castro said. She cited Commission on Audit findings involving alleged irregularities, including “ghost vouchers” and “ghost food packs,” and said the impeachment case centers on transparency and accountability rather than politics. “What is being discussed now is transparency and accountability,” she said. “There are issues that have to be answered, and this is not about preventing the Vice-President from running.” Ms. Castro added that if Ms. Duterte could refute the allegations against her, “nothing would prevent her from running” in the next presidential election. — Erika Mae P. Sinaking and Kaela Patricia B. Gabriel Source: BusinessWorld Nation