MANILA, Philippines — Manila 3rd District Representative Joel Chua has pressed for a rigorous investigation into the property declarations of Vice President Sara Duterte following recent revelations from the National Bureau of Investigation (NBI).
During a weekend news forum, Chua—who serves as a member of the House prosecution panel—pointed to NBI aerial images of an agricultural property in Catigan, Davao City, allegedly owned by Duterte and her husband, Atty. Manases “Mans” Carpio.
While the lot was declared in the Vice President’s statement of assets, liabilities, and net worth (SALN) at a modest valuation of ₱890,000, the ocular and photographic findings revealed significant developments.
”Hindi lang isang swimming pool ang nakita natin dito—dalawang swimming pool—tapos may helipad. Ang laking mansyon,” Chua remarked, highlighting the discrepancy between the official declaration and the actual state of the land.
The lawmaker also drew attention to an internal access road captured in the aerial footage, jokingly referring to it in contrast to standard government infrastructure.
”May farm-to-market, farm-to-mansion road,” Chua noted.
Chua questioned the sufficiency of merely listing a parcel of land in financial disclosures without updating or properly reflecting the massive improvements built upon it over time.
“Alam po ninyo hindi sapat na magdedeklara ka lamang o idedeklara mo lamang ang property dito, tapos na,” he stated.
He further emphasized the necessity of accuracy in public officials’ financial transparency documents: “So dapat siguro mas maganda, mas lalo pa nating suriin ito. Alam ninyo hindi naman sapat na magdedeklara ka lamang o idedeklara mo lamang yung property dito, tapos na. Siyempre dapat pag magdedeklara ka ng property, dapat yung tama rin, yung totoo.”
According to Chua, subsequent SALNs only reflected the acquisition cost of the raw land without capturing the substantial construction value, making an exhaustive probe imperative.
”Hindi ordinaryong improvement ito. Ngayon ang tanong, magkano ang nagastos din dito sa improvement? So dapat lahat yan tingnan at i-consider,” he added, questioning how an estate featuring a mansion, dual swimming pools, and a helipad could maintain such a low declared market estimation.
The NBI is currently pursuing a separate probe into properties tied to Duterte and her relatives, utilizing official SALNs and field inspections to cross-examine declared assets against physical structures.
NBI Director Melvin Matibag confirmed that investigators are mapping out discrepancies between paperwork and real-world property evaluations.