The legal team of Vice President Sara Duterte must provide a substantive explanation for how she and her husband accumulated their wealth and reconcile discrepancies found in her sworn financial declarations, according to private prosecutor Atty. Benjamin Tolosa Jr.
Tolosa emphasized that the core issue in the remaining impeachment charge is whether the defense can successfully address the gap between financial records presented by the prosecution and the declarations in Duterte’s Statements of Assets, Liabilities, and Net Worth (SALNs).
During a radio interview, Tolosa noted that official documentation detailing financial holdings examined by forensic analyst Alexander Cabrera highlights serious inconsistencies.
“Sa pagbabalik ng proceedings, magkakaroon na naman ng oportunidad [ang depensa] na magpresenta ng ebidensya. Tingnan natin kung paano nila ipapaliwanag ang bagay na ito,” Tolosa said.
According to Tolosa, the defense faces two central inquiries: identifying the origin of the wealth highlighted in the financial analysis and explaining why those assets were not fully represented in her SALNs.
The House prosecution previously presented Cabrera’s assessment, which estimated at least ₱817.87 million in allegedly undeclared assets linked to Duterte and her husband, Atty. Manases “Mans” Carpio, spanning from 2022 to 2025.
Cabrera noted that this is a conservative projection, with a broader calculation potentially reaching ₱1.5 billion prior to tax and liability adjustments. In contrast, Duterte’s 2025 SALN recorded a net worth of roughly ₱98.66 million.
Tolosa added that the prosecution will cross-examine these financial findings against income tax declarations submitted to the Bureau of Internal Revenue (BIR), stressing that the inconsistencies require deep accounting justification rather than casual dismissal.
Having rested its evidence presentation for Article II—the sole remaining charge following the withdrawal of three other articles concerning confidential funds, grave threats, and bribery—the House prosecution awaits the defense’s response.
Duterte’s defense team is set to present its evidence when the impeachment trial resumes on November 9, leaving senator-judges to evaluate the veracity of the remaining allegations.