DAVAO CITY, Philippines – The testimonies of two former Land Bank of the Philippines (LBP) branch managers could serve as crucial “building blocks” for the prosecution’s case in the impeachment trial of Vice President Sara Duterte, a lawyers’ group spokesperson said.
Lawyer Arvin Dexter Lopoz, spokesperson of the Union of People’s Lawyers Mindanao (UPLM), said the bankers’ accounts corroborate earlier statements by former special disbursing officer Ramil Madriaga, who claimed he had been instructed to transport bags containing cash to various locations.
“There is now corroboration in his (Madriaga) testimony,” Lopoz said during a Davao Today panel discussion on July 31.
“The Landbank manager who oversaw the encashing and bagging witnessed how the four gym bags were taken through the fire exit and back door.”
He said the testimonies lay the groundwork for the prosecution to prove that liquidation reports contained fictitious names and signatures, including that of “Mary Grace Piattos.”
Former Landbank Shaw Boulevard branch manager Violeta Constantino testified before the Senate, sitting as an impeachment court, that she personally supervised the encashment of four checks worth P125 million each, totaling P500 million, withdrawn by the Office of the Vice President (OVP) between December 2022 and July 2023.
She said the cash had to be packed into several gym bags before being released to OVP personnel.
Former Landbank DepEd branch manager Nenita Camposano similarly testified that the encashment of three checks worth P37.5 million each, totaling P112.5 million, was “highly unusual” based on her decades of banking experience, noting that government agencies normally withdrew much smaller amounts in cash.
Both managers clarified that the transactions were not classified as suspicious under anti-money laundering regulations because they complied with banking requirements and were properly authorized.
The Senate impeachment court admitted into evidence the Landbank checks covering the P500 million withdrawn from the OVP.
No ‘fishing expedition’
Lopoz rejected the defense’s argument that subpoenas issued by the impeachment court constitute a “fishing expedition,” saying Philippine procedural rules allow courts to compel the production of documents and testimony during fact-finding.
“The impeachment process, as the Constitution’s highest accountability mechanism, should not be treated differently,” he said.
The Senate impeachment court earlier granted the prosecution’s request to subpoena Duterte’s peso-denominated bank records, tax records and documents from the Anti-Money Laundering Council (AMLC), ruling they were sufficiently relevant to the allegations under Article II of the Articles of Impeachment.
President Ferdinand Marcos Jr. authorized the Bureau of Internal Revenue (BIR) to release Duterte’s confidential tax records to the court, as required under the National Internal Revenue Code. The records are expected to support allegations of unexplained wealth.
Money in question best spent for education
For Elliot Dimasuhid, former editor-in-chief of Atenews, the financial questions raised during the trial should be viewed against the continuing challenges confronting the country’s education sector.
He said that despite education receiving the largest allocation in the national budget during Duterte’s tenure as Education secretary and the implementation of reforms under the MATATAG agenda, many structural problems remain unresolved.
“This amount of money could very well have gone toward classroom construction, teacher development, learner support programs, and other learning initiatives to further learning recovery efforts for students,” he said.
Dimasuhid said the impeachment proceedings should encourage Filipinos to examine whether public funds were translated into meaningful improvements in public services, noting that the country’s learning crisis remains far from over.
The prosecution is expected to continue presenting evidence on the first article of impeachment next week, including testimonies from Commission on Audit officials assigned to review intelligence and confidential funds. (davaotoday.com)
