Sara Duterte’s ‘loose investments’ in Gencorp earn her P2.1-M ‘return of capital’

An article of incorporation presented by the prosecution during the impeachment trial shows the Vice President paid P46,000 in capital stock

MANILA, Philippines – An in-house corporate counsel of Gencorp Industries Inc. denied that Vice President Sara Duterte has business interests in the company, despite it being listed in her sworn Statements of Assets, Liabilities, and Net Worth (SALNs). 

On Day 42 of the impeachment trial on Wednesday, November 11, Suzette Balucanag-Punay refuted a portion of the forensic financial report of lawyer Alexander Cabrera, which indicated that Duterte owns a 20% stake in Gencorp and has paid-up capital in the company amounting to P250,000. 

Balucanag-Punay also said Duterte is not a stockholder of Gencorp and does not participate in any stockholders’ meetings. She said the Vice President also has no involvement in the board of directors, management, as well as in the decision-making of the company. 

“She is not a beneficial owner of Gencorp,” the corporate counsel told the impeachment court.

Balucanag-Punay, however, said Duterte received more than P2.1 million in “return of capital” from Gencorp between 2022 and 2025 from what she described as “loose investment.”

Duterte received return of capital amounting to P337,500 from Gencorp in 2022; P555,750 from May to December 2023; P612,419 in 2024; and P636,700 in 2025. 

She, however, did not receive any return of capital from January to April 2023.

“I termed it as a loose investment, your honor. It’s coming from the contributions that the Vice President made for Davao Bounty Times before the actual commencement of the operations of Jollibee Times Square,” said Balucanag-Punay.

According to the witness, Duterte initially invested in Davao Bounty Foods Corporation, a company that attempted to acquire the franchise of a Jollibee branch in Davao. The franchise, however, was not granted, and Duterte’s investments were carried over to the companies that operated the Jollibee Times Square branch, including Gencorp.

Gencorp now operates five Jollibee branches in Davao: Centerpoint Plaza, Davao Gaisano Mall, Abreeza Mall, Times Square Plaza Center, and Bolton.

Balucanag-Punay said Duterte’s investments only covered the Jollibee Times Square branch and not Gencorp. She also said she is unaware of the nature of the investments and their exact amount.

An article of incorporation presented by the prosecution showed Duterte paid capital stock to Davao Bounty amounting to P46,000. 

Prosecution counsel Lorna Kapunan pressed Balucanag-Punay on Duterte’s possible other investments in Gencorp, citing the ballooning of her investment from P46,000 to P2.14 million. 

“I am unaware if there’s any because I cannot verify it from other records,” Balucanag-Punay said, adding she could not confirm how the returns of capital were calculated and if the Vice President still receives income from Gencorp. 

Article XII, Section VII of the 1987 Constitution prohibits the president, vice president, and members of the Cabinet from holding any other office or employment during their tenure. They are also barred from “directly or indirectly, practice any other profession, participate in any business, or be financially interested in any contract with, or in any franchise, or special privilege granted by the Government or any subdivision, agency, or instrumentality thereof, including government-owned or controlled corporations or their subsidiaries.”

Balucanag-Punay’s responses did not sit well with some senator-judges, including Senator-judge Raffy Tulfo, who questioned her credibility. 

“You know that you will testify here, so you should have researched. Now, you cannot even present any document that would back up your claims that it was return of investment,” Tulfo said.

Duterte is facing impeachment proceedings under Article II of the articles of impeachment, which involves allegations of unexplained wealth, including allegedly undeclared assets and properties. 

As part of the impeachment article, the prosecution challenged Duterte’s inclusion of stock ownership in Gencorp in her 2024-2025 SALN, despite her name’s absence on the company’s corporate records. 

Defense drops witnesses

In a related development, the defense dropped some of its witnesses, announcing they were dispensing with the testimonies of subpoenaed bank officials — except representatives from Bank of the Philippine Islands (BPI) — to expedite the proceedings.

“We don’t think there’s a need to waste the time of the court in presenting all of the bank representatives, so we tightened the list and left only the BPI official. It’s in the interest of expediting the proceedings,” defense lawyer Michael Poa said. – Rappler.com