Defense witness requests new hearing date

A corporate counsel expected to testify in the impeachment trial of Vice President Sara Duterte will miss Monday’s hearing because of a previously scheduled medical examination, House lead prosecutor Rep. Gerville Luistro said Sunday.

Atty. Suzette Balucanag-Punay, corporate counsel of GenCorp Industries Inc. and Metro City Chow Foods Corp., had been scheduled to testify on Duterte’s alleged involvement in the two companies and matters concerning the prosecution’s unexplained wealth allegations.

“The next supposed witness is Attorney Punay, the corporate counsel of GenCorp and Metro City Chow, who apparently asked to be excused because of a scheduled MRI,” Luistro said in a radio interview.

Luistro added Punay would likely take the witness stand on Wednesday instead.

Punay is the second defense witness to miss the trial’s resumption. Constitutional law professor Ralph Sarmiento had asked to be dropped from the proceedings to preserve his “impartiality” as a legal scholar.

Of the 24 witnesses listed in the defense’s submission on 4 November, Luistro said the camp could instead call Davao City Assessor Jaime Adalin, Island Garden City of Samal Assessor John Kenneth Enumerables and Matina Crossing Barangay chairperson Cindy Colina.

SALN omissions

The local officials are expected to address properties allegedly omitted from Duterte’s Statement of Assets, Liabilities and Net Worth (SALN), based on records presented by the Land Registration Authority during the prosecution’s presentation of evidence.

Luistro said prosecutors had submitted copies of land titles and deeds of sale covering the properties. She also renewed her challenge for Duterte to take the witness stand, saying only the Vice President could explain alleged discrepancies in her SALN.

“We can’t think of anybody else. The lone person who can really explain what happened is no less than the Vice President,” Luistro said.

Duterte has yet to testify in her own proceedings and has so far been represented by her lawyers.

Meanwhile, Bicol Saro Partylist Rep. Terry Ridon, a public prosecutor, said the defense’s bank and corporate witnesses could end up reinforcing the prosecution’s allegations of unexplained wealth.

Ridon argued that bank officials would have difficulty disputing account balances reflected in official records, while corporate documents submitted to the Securities and Exchange Commission could likewise be used to examine Duterte’s alleged business interests.

He cited GenCorp’s inclusion in Duterte’s SALN despite the absence of her name in the company’s SEC records, and raised questions about the alleged involvement of the companies in dealings with the Davao City government.