Bank records delayed impeach raps retreat
‘We have to explain; it was not possible to make that decision at the start.’
The House prosecution panel’s decision to withdraw three of its four impeachment articles was delayed because prosecutors initially lacked access to Vice President Sara Duterte’s financial records, a member of the prosecution team said.
Addressing concerns over the timing of the move, private prosecutor Atty. Benjamin “Jay” Tolosa said the panel could not have made such a decision at the start of the trial.
Tolosa explained that only after examining Duterte’s bank accounts and tax records were prosecutors able to agree to narrow the case to a single article of impeachment.
He pointed out, however, that such documents were not readily available to prosecutors, so they made the decision only after presenting all their evidence on Articles I, II, and IV.
“We have to explain, it was not possible to make that decision at the start,” Tolosa said. “Remember, these documents, we did not immediately get them.”
Defense blamed
The private prosecutor recalled that the defense tried to block the production of the documents by virtue of a subpoena from the court, arguing that presenting them violated their client’s rights and Philippine laws.
The objections prompted the court to hold oral arguments, where both counsels presented their case on whether the financial documents could be disclosed.
In a decision on 20 July, the Senate impeachment court partially granted the prosecution’s bid to issue subpoenas for bank accounts, tax records, Anti-Money Laundering Council reports, and documents from 20 entities allegedly linked to Duterte and her husband, Atty. Manases “Mans” Carpio.
Even with the subpoena, Tolosa said it took time for the court to receive the requested documents and turn them over to both parties for marking.
“We all saw the boxes of documents. That was only when we were able to study it,” he said.