Bank records presented in Vice President Sara Duterte’s impeachment trial would be difficult to dispute unless there is evidence of tampering, Palace press officer Claire Castro said on Wednesday.
Castro, a lawyer, was asked about the evidentiary weight of bank records after financial documents involving Duterte and her husband, Manases Carpio, were presented before the Senate impeachment court.
‘The bank accounts presented by the bank representatives themselves have a significant impact and carry substantial value,’ Castro told reporters at the Philippine embassy in Singapore.
‘Bank records do not lie,’ she added.
Castro said such records would be difficult to dispute unless there was evidence of document tampering, which she said was rare because banks’ credibility and integrity were at stake.
She declined, however, to say how the Senate, sitting as an impeachment court, should rule on the evidence against Duterte.
‘We do not want to speak about what decision the Senate or the senator-judges will make regarding the impeachment trial,’ Castro said.
She said the public should instead examine the evidence presented during the proceedings.
She said the evidence should establish what was contained in the bank accounts involving Duterte, Carpio and former President Rodrigo Duterte.
Castro also said Duterte should explain whether the funds reflected in the proceedings were legitimate and whether amounts cited during the hearing had been properly declared in her statements of assets, liabilities and net worth.
Anti-Money Laundering Council (AMLC) Executive Director Ronel Buenaventura testified on Monday that AMLC records showed 666 covered transaction reports and 55 suspicious transaction reports involving Duterte and Carpio.
The transactions amounted to about P4.4 billion from 2007 to 2025.
During cross-examination, however, Buenaventura said he had no personal knowledge of whether Duterte had amassed unexplained wealth. He said his testimony was based on records available to the AMLC.
The impeachment court also heard testimony from bank representatives as prosecutors presented financial records involving Duterte and Carpio.