RETIRED Sandiganbayan Presiding Justice Amparo Cabotaje-Tang declared Monday that her testimony in the impeachment trial of Vice President Sara Z. Duterte was “not for sale,” denying that she had been promised anything in exchange for taking the witness stand.
“My testimony is not for sale, sir,” Cabotaje-Tang told defense counsel Mark Vinluan during cross-examination before the Senate impeachment court.
Asked whether she had been promised anything in return for her testimony, Cabotaje-Tang answered: “No, sir. And I will never testify if I if I ever I was offered anything material or otherwise.”
Vinluan also asked Cabotaje-Tang whether she was seeking an ambassadorial position.
“No, sir. I am retired and I want to enjoy my retirement,” she replied.
Cabotaje-Tang, the prosecution’s first witness under Article II of the Articles of Impeachment, earlier testified on general legal principles involving unexplained wealth, Statements of Assets, Liabilities and Net Worth (SALNs), beneficial ownership and public accountability.
During cross-examination, she said House prosecutor Akbayan Party-list Rep. Chel Diokno did not give her the specific questions he would ask before her testimony, although he informed her about the laws involving SALNs and related matters.
“No, sir. Not the questions, but honestly, he told me about the the laws regarding SALN and the like,” Cabotaje-Tang said.
She also confirmed that she knew beforehand that she was intended to be presented as an expert witness.
Vinluan pressed Cabotaje-Tang on whether she had studied the full facts and evidence of Duterte’s impeachment case before giving her testimony.
“I never made any conclusion of fact or law here regarding this case. All I dwelt on were our laws about anti-corruption and their application by the Supreme Court,” Cabotaje-Tang said.
Asked directly whether she had studied the facts of the case in full, she answered, “No.”
Cabotaje-Tang said her testimony was limited to “the proper applications of the anti-corruption laws as ruled by the Supreme Court.”
She also acknowledged that she had no personal knowledge whether Duterte had amassed unexplained wealth.
“No, sir,” Cabotaje-Tang replied when Vinluan asked whether she personally knew if the Vice President had accumulated unexplained wealth.
She likewise said she was unaware of any real or personal property, stocks or bonds that Duterte allegedly failed to declare or misdeclared in her SALNs.
Asked whether she had any personal knowledge of the accuracy of Duterte’s SALNs, Cabotaje-Tang said: “I have none. Absolutely, sir.”
The former Sandiganbayan chief’s testimony was presented by the prosecution to lay down the general legal framework for evaluating the financial and documentary evidence it intends to present under Article II, rather than to establish from her personal knowledge that Duterte possessed unexplained wealth.
Earlier in her testimony, Cabotaje-Tang described the SALN as an “accountability framework” and discussed laws and Supreme Court rulings governing unexplained wealth and the disclosure obligations of public officials.
Article II accuses Duterte of accumulating wealth allegedly disproportionate to her lawful income and failing to fully and truthfully disclose her assets, liabilities and financial interests.
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