Acosta’s problems with Tagalog may be courtroom jitters, prosec says

MANILA, Philippines — The prosecution panel has given former special disbursing officer Gina Acosta the benefit of the doubt regarding contradictions between her difficulty answering questions in English or Tagalog and her speaking the languages in a previous hearing, saying it might be due to courtroom jitters.

In a press briefing on Monday, during a break in Vice President Sara Duterte’s impeachment trial, prosecution spokesperson and advisor Robert Ace Barbers said Acosta may have felt nervous since she is now facing an impeachment court, not a congressional inquiry.

Acosta found it difficult to answer or understand questions in English and Tagalog, prompting prosecution counsel Amando Virgil Ligutan — who studied and taught law in Cebu — to ask her in Cebuano, or Bisaya.

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But Senator-judge Erwin Tulfo noted that transcripts of the House of Representatives’ committee on good government and public accountability showed Acosta understanding and responding to questions made using either language.

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“In fairness to Ms. Gina Acosta, siguro kinakabahan siya because ito, this is the trial already, unlike in the Committee on Good Government eh medyo kumportable siya na sumagot sa mga katanungan ng ating mga mambabatas,” Barbers told reporters at the Senate.

“In fairness to Ms. Gina Acosta, maybe she was nervous because this is the trial already, unlike in the committee on good government where she might be more comfortable answering questions of lawmakers.)

“But siguro give it a little more time, baka she will be able to adjust and answer […] So siguro medyo kinabahan lang kaya medyo nag-ano, we will give her that benefit of the doubt, so to speak,” he added.

(But maybe give it a little more time; maybe she will be able to adjust and answer […] I think she was just nervous; that’s why she encountered difficulty. We will give her that benefit of the doubt, so to speak.)

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House prosecutor and San Juan Rep. Ysabel Maria Zamora said her colleagues who were present during the committee on good government and public accountability hearings in November 2024 also made the same observations — that Acosta was able to answer in English and Tagalog.

READ: Four OVP execs cited for contempt show up at House hearing

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Zamora did not mention who were the lawmakers were present, but the chairperson of the said committee, Manila Rep. Joel Chua, is part of the House prosecution panel, while lead public prosecutor and Batangas Rep. Gerville Luistro was one of the several lawmakers who quizzed Acosta during the hearings.

Still, Zamora said they do not want to attribute malice to Acosta’s difficulty understanding and answering.

“Well, I was hearing the comments of some of our colleagues there ‘no at sinasabi nga nila na noong hearing sa Kongreso noon ay nakaka-intindi naman siya ng mga tanong in English or Filipino, and she would answer in English, Filipino, and Bisaya na halo,” Zamora said.

(Well, I was hearing the comments of some of our colleagues there and they said that during the congressional hearings before, she understood questions made in English or Filipino, and she would answer in a mix of English, Filipino, and Bisaya.)

“So we were wondering about the difficulty earlier, but of course I don’t want to say that there was some malice involved.  But well, let’s see in the coming hours when she returns to the witness stand,” she added.

Acosta is the sixth witness presented by the prosecution for Article I, or the allegations that Duterte misused the confidential funds (CF) allocated to her offices.  As the special disbursing officer for the Office of the Vice President (OVP), Acosta is responsible for releasing CF allocations, such as payments for rewards and information from confidential informants.

Former LandBank department manager Violeta Constantino, who used to manage the branch along Shaw Boulevard — where the OVP encashed its CF allocations — said that Acosta was present during the withdrawals.

READ: Ex-bank executive: OVP’s P125-M single transaction ‘unusual’

Acosta was first dragged into the CF misuse controversy when she admitted before the committee on good government and public accountability on November 25, 2024, that she left the responsibility of disbursing CF to OVP’s security chief, in accordance with Duterte’s orders.

During the said hearing, Luistro quizzed Acosta as to how the CFs were disbursed.  In response, Acosta said that she left it all to Vice Presidential Security and Protection Group (VPSPG) chief Col. Raymund Dante Lachica, who was assigned with managing confidential funds.

READ: OVP exec: I left secret funds to security head as per VP Sara’s order

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When Luistro pressed further, asking Acosta if she understood the possible repercussions of her actions, the OVP official eventually admitted that Duterte directed her to leave all CF transactions and disbursements to Lachica. /jpv