MANILA, Philippines – Nais makilala ng lahat kung sino si Mary Grace Piattos, ayon sa House prosecution panel nitong Biyernes, Hunyo 26 kasunod ng pagtatapos ng pre-trial conference sa impeachment ni Vice President Sara Duterte.
Nag-isyu ng pahayag si House prosecution impeachment trial spokesperson Zia Adiong ng Lanao del Sur matapos ang sinabi ng prosekusyon na kasama si Mary Grace Piattos bilang isa sa mga witness sa impeachment trial ni Duterte.
“All of us deserve to know who is Mary Grace Piattos because confidential funds are funded by taxpayers’ money. So let’s see if someone who will really show up before the Senate impeachment court and identify himself or herself as Mary Grace Piattos. Excited tayong lahat, para once and for all, ma-establish ang identity nito,” ani Adiong.
Si Mary Grace Piattos ay tinukoy bilang witness sa Article 1 ng impeachment case sa umano’y culpable violation ng Konstitusyon, graft and corruption, betrayal of public trust sa maling paggamit ng P612.5 milyong halaga ng confidential fund para sa Office of the Vice President at Department of Education (DepEd).
Nakilala noong 2024 ang pangalang Mary Grace Piattos bilang signatory sa acknowledgment receipts sa paggamit ni Duterte sa badyet ng mga naturang ahensya. Nalaman din na nakatanggap ng confidential fund allocation ang mga pangalang Kokoy Villamin, Milky Secuya, at iba pa.
“Our allegation is that confidential funds were received by fictitious persons, and this was confirmed by the Philippine Statistic Authority, who said Mary Grace Piattos has no existing birth, marriage or death records. But the acknowledgement receipts indicate such name and signature [of Mary Grace Piattos]. Now, we are going to find out who is the person behind Mary Grace Piattos and if that person actually signed those acknowledgement receipts,” sinabi ni Adiong.
Sang-ayon naman si Benjamin Tolosa Jr., legal spokesperson ng House prosecution team, na maipapakilala na si Mary Grace Piattos sa impeachment trial.
“This is the opportunity for her, if she actually exists to come forward and say, here I am presenting myself before the impeachment court, ready to testify,” ani Tolosa.
“So if she does not appear [before the Senate impeachment court], this just supports our position that she’s a made-up person,” dagdag pa ni Tolosa.
Inasaahang magsisimula ang Senate impeachment court sa impeachment trial ni Duterte sa Hulyo 6.
“The first day of the hearing for the presentation of our first witness has been scheduled on July 6. The presentation of evidence will be done Monday to Wednesday in the weeks before the SONA,” ani Tolosa.
“After the SONA, it would be Tuesday to Thursday. During the pre-trial conference, the prosecution asked for 62 days to present our evidence, while the defense asked for 30 days. That would mean three months of trial, could be more, but it will still depend on several circumstances.”
“If we can present one witness per day, then that will speed it up,” pagpapatuloy nito. RNT/JGC
