HOW is the legal defense of former President Rodrigo Roa Duterte before the International Criminal Court (ICC) being funded, given his family’s long-standing narrative of modest means?
Deputy Speaker Paolo Ortega V of La Union on Monday said the question gained traction after House impeachment proceedings showed Vice President Sara Z. Duterte’s declared net worth at about ₱88 million, alongside flagged bank transactions running into billions of pesos.
“Simple lang daw ang pamumuhay nila, pero ang tanong ng marami: paano natutustusan ang napakalaking gastos sa ICC case ng dating Pangulong Rodrigo Duterte?” Ortega, one of the endorsers of the 4th impeachment complaint, said.
“Kahit paano, may ideya na ang publiko batay sa mga datos na lumalabas sa impeachment hearing, gaya ng bilyon-bilyong transaksyon sa bangko,” he added.
Figures presented during the hearings, based on previous reports from the Anti-Money Laundering Council (AMLC), pointed to at least 663 transactions—630 classified as “covered” and 33 as “suspicious”—linked to Duterte and her husband, with total amounts reaching about P6.7 billion.
Set against those disclosures is the cost of mounting a legal defense before the ICC, with some unverified reports placing monthly legal fees for counsel Nicholas Kaufman at P145 million to P150 million.
“Kung simple ang pinanggalingan at malinaw ang idineklarang yaman, natural lang na magtanong ang publiko kung paano natutustusan ang ganitong kalaking gastusin,” Ortega said.
Ortega noted that if reports of monthly fees reaching up to P150 million for Kaufman are accurate, the amount would already be roughly half of the P88 million net worth declared by the Vice President in her 2025 Statement of Assets, Liabilities and Net Worth (SALN), based on records from the Office of the Ombudsman.
He added that the issue goes beyond legal fees, noting that travel, accommodations, and repeated trips to Europe, particularly to The Netherlands, also entail significant costs.
“May gastos din sa biyahe, tirahan at paulit-ulit na pagpunta sa The Netherlands. Hindi ito maliit na halaga,” Ortega pointed out.
Ortega stressed he was not making an accusation, but calling for clarity.
“These figures are already on record. When taken together, they raise a legitimate question,” he said.
“A clear explanation will settle it. Saan nanggagaling ang pondo?” Ortega added.
