Abante wants Sara Duterte subpoenaed over P612.5-M confidential funds

MANILA, Philippines — Manila Rep. Bienvenido “Benny” Abante Jr. on Friday called for Vice President Sara Duterte to be subpoenaed in her impeachment trial to personally explain what happened to P612.5 million in confidential funds after witnesses disclaimed knowledge of how the money was ultimately spent.

Abante, chairperson of the House Committee on Human Rights and an endorser of one of the impeachment complaints against Duterte, said the Vice President should face the impeachment court herself rather than leave the task of answering the allegations to her subordinates and lawyers.

“The Vice President should really be subpoenaed now. She should personally appear,” Abante said during an online press briefing.

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House impeachment team adviser and spokesperson Ace Barbers, meanwhile, said the evidence and unanswered questions surrounding the confidential funds ultimately point to Duterte.

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“The allegations in this article have already been substantiated, but if there are questions about where the money really went, and all roads lead to Vice President Sara, then perhaps she should explain it to the people,” Barbers said.

Abante stressed that calling Duterte to testify would give her an opportunity to directly answer the allegations and would not amount to a presumption of guilt.

“This is good for the Vice President. It is also good for her because she will be able to answer all the allegations against her,” Abante said.

“And if she is subpoenaed, it does not mean she is guilty. We’re not actually saying that she is guilty,” he added.

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Abante said he was personally among those pushing for Duterte to be called to testify.

“I’ll say it: I’m the one suggesting that she be summoned. Let’s go to the jugular. Let’s see. She is the impeachable officer, so she should really face the court,” he said.

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Abante said there was little reason to continue relying on Duterte’s subordinates when the central questions concern her own accountability as the impeachable official.

“Let’s not make it harder for her deputies, her staff,” he said.

“Why? Because she is the only one who can actually answer all of those allegations against her,” he added.

The confidential fund article covers P500 million spent by the Office of the Vice President (OVP) in 2022 and 2023 and another P112.5 million spent by the Department of Education (DepEd) in 2023 when Duterte was education secretary.

Former OVP special disbursing officer Gina Acosta testified as a hostile prosecution witness that Duterte instructed her to turn over four P125-million tranches of confidential funds to then-security chief Colonel Raymund Dante Lachica.

Acosta said she had no personal knowledge of how the money was ultimately distributed after it was turned over to Lachica.

OVP Assistant Secretary and Assistant Chief of Staff Lemuel Ortonio similarly testified that only Duterte and Lachica knew how the confidential funds were implemented.

Former DepEd undersecretary, chief of staff and spokesperson Michael Wesley Poa, who is now part of Duterte’s defense team, likewise testified that he had no personal knowledge of DepEd’s confidential fund operations.

Barbers said the testimony left unanswered the central question of who actually knew where the money went.

“If you go back to everyone who appeared, none of them knew. The question is, who knows?” Barbers said.

“So who else could better explain where it was placed?” he added.

Barbers later summed up what he described as the unanswered questions arising from the prosecution’s presentation of evidence.

“Bigger questions have been left in the minds of our countrymen: Where is the money? Where is the proof of its proper use or the receipts? And third, who should be held accountable?” he said.

Barbers, however, stressed that the prosecution panel has made no final decision on whether to seek a subpoena for Duterte, saying the matter was still being discussed.

“We’re not at that point yet, and it is still being discussed. Someone is merely suggesting it. But there is no final decision yet on whether she will be summoned,” he said.

He said the prosecution could eventually ask the impeachment court to subpoena Duterte if her presence becomes necessary to resolve questions left unanswered by the evidence.

“If her presence is really required and the questions that are left hanging remain unanswered, perhaps that’s the time that we will ask the court to subpoena her,” Barbers said.

Barbers also acknowledged that the impeachment rules do not compel Duterte to personally attend the trial because she is represented by lawyers.

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“The rules of impeachment do not compel the respondent to appear. That is why she has lawyers,” he said.