SEC defers board issue to Senate

The Securities and Exchange Commission has not determined whether Vice President Sara Duterte violated the Constitution by remaining on the board of a private company while in office, an SEC official told the Senate impeachment court on Monday.

SEC Company Registration and Monitoring Department director Gerardo del Rosario said corporate filings showed Duterte remained a director of Metro City Chow Foods Corp. during her vice presidency, with records from 2022 through 2025 continuing to list her in the position.

Del Rosario also confirmed that Duterte was listed as a member of the company’s compensation committee, prompting Senate President Sherwin Gatchalian to ask whether her corporate roles constituted a prohibited participation in business.

“The provision states that you should not hold another office or employment, engage in another profession, or participate in a business during your term of office,” Del Rosario said in English and Filipino.

“Perhaps it is up to the Senate to determine whether there was indeed a violation,” he added.

When Gatchalian later asked Del Rosario whether Duterte’s membership in the compensation committee indicated a “direct participation” in the corporation’s management, the SEC official referred to the company’s corporate secretary’s report.

Gatchalian then pointed to the constitutional restriction. “Because it states here that participating in any business is prohibited,” he said.

“Yes,” Del Rosario replied. He clarified that the SEC had not investigated Duterte’s corporate positions as a possible constitutional violation, saying the agency’s records reflected corporate filings rather than a determination of a public official’s liability under the Constitution.

Former Sandiganbayan Presiding Justice Amparo Cabotaje-Tang had earlier told the impeachment court that Article VII, Section 13 of the Constitution prohibits the President and Vice President from directly or indirectly participating in business while in office.