HOUSE prosecutors will trace the source of the P33.35-million increase in Vice President Sara Z. Duterte’s declared net worth from 2021 to 2025 and determine whether it can be accounted for by legitimate income reflected in her tax records.
Prosecution counsel and spokesperson Benjamin “Jay” Tolosa Jr. stressed Tuesday that an increase in wealth is not by itself improper, but said public officials must be able to show where it came from.
“Again, walang masama na tumaas ang yaman, pero kailangan ang mga lingkod-bayan natin, mapakita nila na galing ’yan sa lehitimong mga pinanggalingan or sources,” Tolosa said at a post-trial press conference.
Duterte reported a net worth of P65.31 million in her 2021 Statement of Assets, Liabilities and Net Worth (SALN), her last full year before becoming vice president in 2022.
By the end of 2025, her declared net worth had reached P98.66 million, an increase of about P33.35 million.
“So kailangan makita saan nanggaling itong increase ng P33 million itong period na ’to, at nakadeklara ’yan ba sa mga BIR filings niya,” Tolosa said.
The prosecution plans to compare Duterte’s SALNs with records from the Bureau of Internal Revenue and other financial evidence as it seeks to determine whether her declared wealth is consistent with legitimate sources of income.
Tolosa said prosecutors would also consider whether any other sources of income were permissible given the restrictions applicable to Duterte as vice president.
The P33.35-million increase forms part of a longer rise in Duterte’s declared net worth documented in SALNs presented Tuesday by lawyer Karen Batu of the Office of the Ombudsman.
Duterte declared P7.25 million in net worth in 2007, when she entered public office as Davao City vice mayor. By 2025, the figure had reached P98.66 million, an increase of about P91.4 million.
The figures themselves do not establish unexplained wealth. Prosecutors say they will compare the declarations with tax, bank, corporate and other financial records as they pursue Article II of the Articles of Impeachment.
metrosundaily
