THE corporate records presented during the Senate impeachment trial showed that no dividends from companies linked to Vice President Sara Duterte and her husband could account for the increase in their declared wealth, Senate President Win Gatchalian observed.
During Tuesday’s trial, Gatchalian questioned Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) Director Atty. Gerardo F. Del Rosario after reviewing the witness’s company-by-company summary of General Information Sheets and audited financial statements.
“Tama po ba na sa lahat po ng mga corporations na may kaugnayan kay Vice President Sara at kay Manases Carpio, wala po ni isa ang nag-declare ng dividends?” Gatchalian asked.
“Tama po. Wala pong information kung nag-declare sila ng dividend,” Del Rosario answered.
The answer referred to the SEC records examined in court. During Monday’s testimony, Del Rosario and Presiding Officer Francis Escudero distinguished companies whose available GIS and financial statements contained no dividend declaration from companies that had not filed financial statements, leaving no data for the witness to determine whether dividends existed.
Gatchalian asked whether the corporate records could therefore support an explanation that Duterte’s declared net worth increased through those companies. Del Rosario said the records did not show dividends received or other income personally obtained from them.
“Kung ayon po rito at wala po siyang natanggap na benepisyo o dividend, hindi ko po alam kung mayroon siyang ide-deklarang kinita out of these corporations,” Del Rosario said.
Duterte’s SALNs listed Metro City Chow Foods Corporation and Gencorp Industries Inc. under her business interests. Her December 31, 2024 SALN identified her as an incorporator and stockholder of Metro City Chow and a stockholder of Gencorp. The SALN itself did not state share income, dividends or compensation from either company.
The same SALN reported total assets of ₱98,462,370.22, liabilities of ₱9,950,000 and net worth of ₱88,512,370.22. Her declared 2025 net worth was ₱98,656,131.20, an increase of ₱10,143,760.98. The interjections examined whether the corporate filings supplied any documented dividend income relevant to that change.
The SEC presentation showed Duterte with a 20-percent interest in Metro City Chow. Its records listed her 500 shares at ₱50,000. The company’s available records examined in court contained no information showing a dividend declaration.
For Gencorp, Del Rosario read company sales totaling ₱1,042,746,818 and company net income totaling ₱8,039,201 from 2021 through 2024. He separately testified that the financial statements and GIS reviewed contained no information showing a dividend declaration for that period. The sales and profits were company figures and were not identified as personal income received by Duterte.
Gatchalian also examined losses reported by most of the corporations in the summary. He identified Gencorp, Davao Emerging Taipans, SGT Fortune Horse and Mati City Ice Plant among the exceptions to the loss pattern he observed.
For companies with a deficit in unrestricted retained earnings, Del Rosario explained why the records did not support a dividend payment.
“Iyong mga deficit ang retained earnings po, hindi po makapag-declare ng dividend,” he said.
The Senate President then asked about companies that had failed to file their required GIS or audited financial statements. Del Rosario said his department monitors annual compliance and issues notices directing corporations to submit missing reports.
“Kung ang corporation, stock man o non-stock, ay hindi nakapagsumite ng nasabing report, pinapadalhan po namin sila ng notice to submit,” Del Rosario said.
Continued failure could lead to the revocation of a company’s registration, he added: “Kung magpapatuloy na hindi sila magsumite ng report, maaari po naming i-revoke ang kanilang certificate of registration.”
Del Rosario clarified that some corporations in the presentation had not been revoked by the SEC but had voluntarily applied to shorten their corporate terms. He identified SGT Fortune Horse among those companies.
The interjections remained focused on what the filed records could document. The witness did not say that Duterte received no income from any possible source. He said the examined corporate filings did not show dividends or another declared corporate payment that could be attributed to her.
Gatchalian noted that the increase in wealth could have come from other sources: “Puwede sa ibang source. Hindi lang dito sa corporations.”
metrosundaily
