Duterte spox: Forensic report lacked context on Carpio's credit card expenses
Vice President Sara Duterte's spokesperson Paolo A. Panelo on Thursday defended the foreign credit card transactions of the Vice President's husband, Manases Carpio, saying the prosecution's forensic report presented the expenses without sufficient context.
Panelo argued that the transactions highlighted by the prosecution did not establish extravagant or questionable spending by Duterte, citing defense testimony that she was not present during some of the purchases, a restaurant bill in Japan was shared by 11 people, and another expense supported a children's basketball team.
“I think this yung nagpapatunay din how silly the forensic report was for highlighting these without the proper context,” Panelo said in an ambush interview.
He cited the testimony of defense witnesses explaining the circumstances behind the transactions, including a dinner in Tokyo, Japan, and purchases at Nike stores overseas.
On Thursday, lawyer Anel Martin Antero testified about a P205,007.29 credit card charge at Ginza Inakaya restaurant in Tokyo on 19 May 2023.
Antero said Carpio used his credit card to settle the group's bill because some of their companions did not have Japanese yen. The meal was shared by 11 people, and the other diners subsequently reimbursed Carpio for their respective shares.
Panelo said the transaction should not be treated as an individual expense without considering the circumstances of the dinner. “Labing isa naman pala silang magkakaibigan na kumain dun sa Tokyo,” he said.
Nike purchase
He also cited the P256,882.50 Nike purchase at Pavilion Kuala Lumpur in Malaysia, which the defense previously explained was for sports apparel and other items for a basketball team supported by Carpio.
“Sinuporta naman pala sa isang children's basketball team yung isang gastusin na 'yon,” he said.
The transactions were among the expenses identified by prosecution financial forensic analyst Alexander Cabrera in his examination of the financial records of Duterte and Carpio.
Cabrera had flagged more than P1 million in credit card transactions involving purchases in Japan, Malaysia and the Philippines, including Nike purchases and the Tokyo restaurant bill.
‘Malicious. Misleading’
Carpio had earlier maintained that the expenses were personal transactions paid using his own money and should not be attributed to his wife or her official functions.
Panelo also questioned the decision to highlight the purchases without their accompanying explanations, saying the absence of context could make the report misleading.
“For me, it was inappropriate for Attorney Alex Cabrera to highlight this in the report. Especially na wala siyang context. Kasi pagka walang context, malicious. Misleading, pwedeng misleading,” he said.
The impeachment trial is currently hearing the defense's evidence on Article II, the remaining article against Duterte, which covers allegations of unexplained wealth, non-disclosure of assets and prohibited business interests.
The Vice President has denied wrongdoing.