Metro Manila, Philippines – Two Land Registration Authority (LRA) officials testified Thursday, Oct. 1, about properties registered to Vice President Sara Duterte’s husband, Manases “Mans” Carpio, as the Senate Impeachment Court heard the prosecution’s evidence on allegations of unexplained wealth and non-disclosure of assets.
One such asset is a 379-square meter property in Matina, Davao City, acquired for ₱6 million in 2024, while the other is a property in Barangay Matanos, Island Garden City of Samal, covered by a 2018 deed of sale.
The prosecution argued that the properties did not match entries in Duterte’s Statements of Assets, Liabilities and Net Worth (SALNs), while the defense questioned whether the properties could correspond to assets already declared by the vice president.
Davao City Register of Deeds Kathy Florence Baldonado said the Matina property remains covered by an active title listing Carpio as owner, married to Duterte.
She said the deed of sale showed a purchase price of ₱6 million.
When Senator-judge Chiz Escudero compared the LRA records with Duterte’s SALNs, he pointed out differences in the property’s location, purchase price and mode of acquisition.
Baldonado said the LRA could only verify what was stated in its records.
“Ang makukumpirma ko lang ay kung may nag-match na entries sa SALN kung ibabase sa document,” she said.
[Translation: What I can confirm is only whether there are matching entries in the SALN based on the document.]
She also said the LRA does not always have maps that could establish whether two property descriptions refer to the same lot.
The prosecution then presented Samal acting Register of Deeds Marco Pineda, who also testified about properties registered to Carpio, including one in Matanos.
Pineda said the property covered by a deed of absolute sale dated March 15, 2018, did not match the property descriptions in Duterte’s SALNs.
He declined to conclude whether the properties were the same, saying he was a ministerial officer limited to the records before him.
During the defense’s cross examination, however, Pineda confirmed that the ₱346,960 assessed value in a tax declaration matched the same figure appearing in Carpio’s portion of Duterte’s 2024 SALN.
The prosecution argued that while the figure matched, that alone did not establish that the property was declared in the SALN.
Escudero also noted that the LRA records alone could not establish whether a property was declared.
Still, lead prosecutor Jinky Luistro said the testimony was significant to Article II of the impeachment complaint, which alleges the vice president’s unexplained wealth and failure to disclose assets.
Luistro said that when a property is covered by a title, its transfer certificate of title (TCT) number should appear in the SALN.
“Since TCT numbers do not appear in the SALN, for the prosecution it is a clear establishment that it’s not in the SALN,” Luistro said.
AMLC testimony deferred
The court also deferred the testimony of Anti-Money Laundering Council (AMLC) Executive Director Ronel Buenaventura, originally scheduled for Friday, after the defense sought more time to review the AMLC records.
Defense counsel Sheila Sison said the defense received the AMLC summaries only Thursday morning and needed time to examine the material, including documents contained in more than 20 boxes.
She also raised concerns over the confidentiality of AMLC records.
The prosecution opposed the request, pointing to the defense’s September receipt of the AMLC records and the impeachment court’s July ruling on the subpoena.
Presiding Officer Chiz Escudero ultimately granted the defense additional preparation time “out of courtesy and equity.”
The AMLC witness will testify Monday, Oct. 5, followed by bank officials, representatives of insurance companies and a Bureau of Internal Revenue witness.
There will be no trial on Friday.
