Bicol Saro Party-list Representative Terry Ridon on Saturday dismissed allegations from Vice President Sara Duterte’s camp that prosecutors are engaging in a “fishing expedition” by seeking the financial and tax records of Duterte and her spouse, Atty. Mans Carpio.
During a media forum, Ridon justified the prosecution’s move to issue subpoenas for documents from the Bureau of Internal Revenue (BIR), the Anti-Money Laundering Council (AMLC), and various banking institutions.
“Ang totoo po, wala pong fishing expedition kung balyena ang nahanap,” Ridon said during a media forum.
The legal defense for the Vice President has repeatedly contended that the prosecution is trying to accumulate evidence prior to actually validating the complaints filed against Duterte.
Previously, defense spokesperson Atty. Michael Poa slammed the prosecution’s push for subpoenas duces tecum, labeling the effort as nothing more than a “mere fishing expedition.”
However, Ridon countered that the sought-after records cover enormous financial activity that built up over a period of two decades.
“Kasi ang pinag-uusapan naman natin nito hindi po barya-baryang pera. Ang pinag-uusapan po natin dito ₱6.7 billion in total transactions over the course of 20 years over,” he said.
Ridon pointed out that the bank accounts belonging to the Duterte-Carpio couple saw incoming flows of roughly ₱4.4 billion within that same timeframe.
“Malalaki po ang pera natin na hindi ho maimagine ng ating mga kababayan kung paano po ito nangyari,” Ridon said.
The House prosecutor remains confident that the panel can convince the Supreme Court to greenlight the disclosure of the tax and bank records, maintaining that their request rests on solid legal foundations.