The House committee on justice issued multiple subpoenas on Wednesday in connection with impeachment complaints against Vice President Sara Duterte, seeking her statements of assets, tax records and other documents from 2007 to 2025. The panel summoned key witnesses and records from agencies like the Ombudsman, BIR, SEC and NBI. Duterte did not attend the hearing.
On Wednesday, the House committee on justice, chaired by Batangas 2nd District Rep. Gerville Luistro, approved multiple subpoenas linked to impeachment complaints against Vice President Sara Duterte. These included a summons to the Ombudsman for certified copies of her statements of assets, liabilities and net worth (SALN) covering 2007-2013 as Davao City vice mayor, 2016-2022 as mayor, and 2022-2025 as vice president. The Bureau of Internal Revenue was ordered to produce tax records for Duterte, her husband Manases Carpio, and associated business entities from 2007-2025. The Securities and Exchange Commission received subpoenas for general information sheets and audited financial statements of firms connected to the Duterte family to verify ownership and financial activity. In a 34-1-0 vote, the panel sought the National Bureau of Investigation's report on Duterte’s alleged assassination threat against President Marcos, First Lady Liza Araneta Marcos, and former Speaker Martin Romualdez in November 2024. Detainee Ramil Lagunoy Madriaga, Duterte’s self-confessed bagman held at Camp Bagong Diwa who reportedly faced death threats and a P500-million bribe offer, was summoned to testify in a 29-1-0 vote; a 35-1-0 motion approved transferring him to a safe House-designated location. Other summons went to notary Cynthia Vinas-Pantonal, a Philippine Statistics Authority representative for Office of the Vice President and DepEd records, and Duterte’s lawyer Michael Poa in a 34-3 vote. Poa stated, “We can contradict his claims if he will be able to testify... to test his credibility.” Cagayan de Oro Rep. Rufus Rodriguez, who voted against the motions, called Madriaga a “polluted witness” and the SALN subpoenas a “classic fishing expedition.” Duterte skipped the hearing, which chair Luistro deemed a “culpable violation of the Constitution” and Rep. Leila de Lima labeled as “disrespect to the constitutional process.” Luistro affirmed continued invitations to Duterte and that the House addresses economic issues without external pressure. Next hearings are set for April 14, 22, and 29. Bayan secretary general Raymond Palatino criticized the absence as disdain for accountability.
