A YEAR-BY-YEAR review of Vice President Sara Z. Duterte’s Statements of Assets, Liabilities and Net Worth (SALN) drew fresh scrutiny at the House Committee on Justice on Wednesday after a lawmaker pressed the Office of the Ombudsman to confirm that the business interests declared by Duterte and her husband, lawyer Manases Carpio, had steadily multiplied over time.
“So tama po ba na base sa mga SALN ni VP Duterte at ni Atty. Mans Carpio ay kada taon ang mga business interests nila ay dumadami?” Surigao del Norte Rep. Bernadette Barbers asked during the hearing.
“We cannot make any conclusion on the ano po. Basta kung ano lang po ‘yung binasa ninyo, we can confirm na ‘yun po ‘yung nakalagay sa SALN nila, Your Honor,” Atty. Karen Batu of the Central Records Division of the Office of the Ombudsman replied.
The exchange came after Barbers methodically walked the committee through the SALN filings from 2007 to 2024, using the records on file to establish how the list of business interests and financial connections expanded across the years.
She began with the 2007 SALN, where only three companies were declared.
“Based po sa SALN ng taong 2007, si VP Sara Duterte at ang kanyang asawa na si Atty. Manases Carpio ay mayroon pong business interest and financial connection sa mga sumusunod. One, Davao Emerging Taipan Corporation, Davao Bounty Times Food Corporation, City Hall King Chow Foods Corporation. Kinukumpirma nyo ba ito?” Barbers said.
“Good morning, Your Honor. Again, reading from the 2007 SAL-N submitted by the Vice President, the business interests and financial connections declared then was the Davao Emerging Taipan Corporation, Davao Bounty Times Food Corporation, and City Hall King Chow Foods Corporation,” Batu answered.
The same three firms remained in the 2008 and 2009 filings before the list started to widen in 2010, when additional companies began appearing in the declarations.
“Based naman po sa SALN ng taong 2010, si VP Duterte at ang kanyang asawang si Atty. Mans Carpio, ay mayroong business interests and financial connections sa mga sumusunod: One, Davao Emerging Taipan Corporation. Two, Davao Bounty Times Food Corporation. Three, City Hall King Chow Foods Corporation. Four, SGT Fortune House Corporation. And number five, CYKT, Inc. Kinukumpirma niyo ba ito?” Barbers asked.
“Your Honor, I’m reading from the 2010 submitted SALN of the Vice President, and the declared business interests and financial connections for that year were the following. Davao Emerging Taipan Corporation, Davao Bounty Times Food Corporation, City Hall King Chow Foods Corporation, SGT Fortune Horse Corporation, and CYKT, Inc.,” Batu said.
By 2011, the declarations had grown further, adding more names to the list and signaling the broader corporate trail that Barbers would later bring into focus before the panel.
“Based on the 2011 SALN submitted by the vice president, Your Honor, the following were the declared business interests and financial connections. Davao Emerging Taipan Corporation, Davao Bounty Times Food Corporation, City Hall King Chow Foods Corporation, SGT Fortune Horse Corporation, CYKT, Inc., and Zelta Matiem Salon,” Batu stated.
When Barbers moved to the 2016 SALN, the names had shifted and the number of listed interests had climbed again, this time to eight, reflecting a broader spread of declared ties.
“Your Honor, I’m reading from the 2016 submitted SALN of the Vice President and the declared business interests and financial connections for that year were the following. Davao New Royal Taipan Corporation, Davao Bounty Times Food Corporation, Metro City Chow Foods Corporation, Times Square B Foods Corporation, SGT Fortune Horse Corporation, CYKT, Inc., Three Kids, Inc. Tracking Services, and Zelta Matiem Salon,” Batu said.
The 2017, 2018, 2019 and 2020 SALNs continued to show several recurring companies, including Davao New Royal Taipan Corp., Metro City Chow Foods Corp., Times Square B Foods Corp. and Tapang at Malasakit Alliance for the Philippines Inc., keeping the committee’s focus on the consistency and eventual expansion of the entries.
The 2021 and 2022 SALNs then moved the count to eight declared business interests and financial connections, this time including Carpio Duterte Lawyers, Kale 88 Foods Corp., Triple 8 Bistro and Mandayaw Fisheries Inc.
“Okay. Okay, Your Honor, we can confirm from the submitted SALN of the Vice President for the 2021 that those mentioned by the Honorable Congresswoman were the declared business interests and financial connections for the 2021,” Batu said.
“Your Honor, based on the 2022 SALN of the Vice President, we can confirm that those you mentioned were those business interests and financial connections declared therein,” she added.
The list grew even longer in 2023, when Barbers pointed to 11 declared business interests and financial connections spanning food ventures, fisheries, real estate-related firms and security operations.
“Your Honor, again, basing on the 2023 submitted SALN of the Vice President, we can confirm that those you mentioned were the business interests and financial connections declared therein,” Batu said.
By 2024, the SALN still carried 10 declared business interests and financial connections, among them Metro City Chow Foods Corporation, GenCorp Industries Inc., Carpio Lawyers, Triple 8 Bistro, Kale 88 Foods Corporation, Mandayaw Fisheries Corporation, Mati City Ice Plant and Gold Storage Inc., Amianan Shores Inc., Geometry Security and Investigation Agency Inc. and Cabletow 88 Shipping and Marine Services Inc.
“Your Honor, reading from the 2024 submitted SALN of the vice president, we can confirm that those ten business interests and financial connections that you have read were declared by the vice president in her 2024 SALN,” Batu told the committee.
After laying out the pattern from the records themselves, Barbers said the growing list of declared corporate links raises a larger question that should now be examined alongside the couple’s income, net worth, and overall wealth.
“Sana po ay merong maipakita sana sa atin kung ano ang importansya o reason ng pagdami ng mga interests sa mga negosyo ng mag-asawang Duterte-Carpio, like paglaki ng kanilang income, net worth at halaga ng kanilang yaman,” Barbers said.
