MANILA, Philippines – Hindi napigilan ng defense team ni Vice President Sara Duterte ang Pagtestigo ng isang financial forensic analyst nitong Biyernes sa impeachment trial, sa kabila ng pagtutol ng nito sa pag-access sa confidential na financial statement.
Pinangunahan ni defense lead counsel Atty. Sheila Sison ang pagtutol.
Ayon kay Sison, matapos i-manifest ng prosecution na tatawagin bilang testigo si Atty. Alexander B. Cabrera, nakatanggap din ang depensa ng tinawag niyang “supposed forensic report” tungkol sa financial, corporate, at property records nina VP Duterte at ng asawa nitong si Atty. Manases Carpio.
“This court explicitly said that it has not issued any subpoena to this particular witness, and neither has it issued any subpoena duces tecum or any authority for this witness to be handed over certain documents, especially documents containing confidential data of the respondent,” panimula ni Sison.
“I am at a loss why this report now contains a statement that the work he purportedly performed involved, on his part, analyzing some documents that were made available to him pursuant to the subpoena from the impeachment court… which includes the vice president’s SALNS from 2022 to 2025, reports from AMLC, the income tax returns filed by the vice president and her spouse, the bank statements and bank records of investments they made, the financial statements of corporations,” dagdag niya.
Giit pa ni Sison, hindi pumapayag at “will never” papayag si Duterte na ibunyag ang mga impormasyong ito sa isang “stranger.”
“What authority does this witness have to hold or be handed over confidential data?” tanong muli ng abogada.
Tugon naman ni public prosecutor Rep. Jose Manuel Diokno, naipahintulot na ng korte ang pagpapakita ng mga confidential na dokumentong tinutukoy ni Sison sa open proceedings.
“I don’t know where the argument is coming from. He has been properly engaged by the prosecution and given the authority to examine those documents… These matters have been allowed by the honorable court,” sabi ni Diokno.
“Alam naman po natin na pinayagan ni presiding officer ang BIR records, pinayagan ni presiding officer ang AMLC records, pinayagan ni presiding officer ang bank records, insurance records. Ano po ang pinagsasabi nilang confidential?” dagdag niya.
Binigyang-diin din ni Diokno na kailangang mabigyan ng kaugnay na dokumento ang mga expert witness para maibahagi nila ang kanilang findings sa korte.
Sa huli, pinayagan ni Presiding Officer Sen. Francis “Chiz” Escudero na tumestigo si Cabrera.
Ayon kay Escudero, maaaring ibigay sa mga napiling eksperto ng mga abogado ang mga ebidensyang “legally obtained.”
“Lawyers in general are allowed to seek the assistance of either lawyers, investigators, or non-lawyers furnished evidence that they have, and if at all subject to that limited access be furnished copies of whatever pieces of evidence, they legally obtained,” ani Escudero. Ernie Reyes
