Highlights: Day 37 of Sara Duterte impeachment trial | Oct. 9, 2026

MANILA, Philippines – Day 37 of Vice President Sara Duterte’s impeachment trial on Friday centered on the testimony of financial forensic analyst lawyer Alexander Cabrera, whom the prosecution presented as its final witness for Article II.

Cabrera’s report alleged that Duterte had a total unexplained wealth of P817.87 million from 2022 to 2025, as summarized in what he referred to as Table 39 of his forensic report. 

READ: Highlights: Day 36 of Sara Duterte impeachment trial | Oct. 8, 2026

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He further testified that Duterte failed to declare over P207 million in cash held in bank accounts belonging to her and her husband, lawyer Manases Carpio, during the years she served as vice president. 

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Cabrera also addressed why Duterte continued to list food company GenCorp Industries Inc. in her Statement of Assets, Liabilities and Net Worth (SALN) even though her name does not appear on the firm’s General Information Sheet. Cabrera suggested the company was too important to omit, noting that a single Jollibee franchise alone can be worth upwards of P30 million. 

The prosecution also confirmed Friday that it has formally dropped Article III of the Articles of Impeachment, which covered allegations that Duterte bribed officials of the Department of Education.

Public prosecutor and Bukidnon Rep. Jonathan Keith Flores said a manifestation to that effect was filed before the Senate Impeachment Court the previous Tuesday, citing timetable constraints. 

Public prosecutor and Bicol Saro party-list Rep. Terry Ridon said that after the defense completes its cross-examination of Cabrera, along with any redirect and re-cross, the prosecution will submit a written formal offer of evidence to the Senate Impeachment Court.

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Earlier in the day, the Senate took down the livestream of the morning session after BIR chief of staff Atty. Anne Loraine Garcia-Marquez flagged that Letters of Authority shown on-screen by the defense contained the names of revenue officers.

Presiding Officer Francis Escudero ordered the clerk of court to take down the original stream and re-upload it with the officers’ names redacted. ^[6] Garcia-Marquez also revealed during the session that the BIR has already issued a Letter of Authority to Cale88 Food Corporation, a company linked to Carpio.

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Separately, prosecution private counsel lawyer Lorna Kapunan criticized the defense’s extended cross-examination of Garcia-Marquez, which touched on annual income tax return schedules and the Revised Corporation Code, asking whether it was another attempt at confusing the public rather than addressing the discrepancies in Duterte’s records. 

Outside the Senate, groups including Akbayan, Bayan, Magdalo Akbayan Youth, and Tindig Pilipinas gathered along JW Diokno Boulevard to call for Duterte’s conviction, with their numbers noticeably higher than on previous days. /dp

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Sources

1. With analyst being prosecution’s last witness, what’s next?
2. Why did Duterte list Gencorp in SALN? Too precious to lose – witness Cabrera
3. Analyst: VP Duterte didn’t declare P207-M cash, total assets reach P817M
4. VP Duterte’s total unexplained wealth at P817.87M – witness’ report
5. BIR issues LOA to Cale88, company linked to Sara Duterte husband
6. Senate takes down impeachment livestream after data privacy concerns
7. Kapunan slams ‘tutorial’: Is the defense confusing the public?
8. Flores confirms prosec manifested dropping bribery article vs VP Duterte
9. LOOK: Protesters calling for Sara conviction gather outside Senate

Editor’s note: This update was generated with the aid of artificial intelligence based on Inquirer.net, Philippine Daily Inquirer and Cebu Daily News articles and reviewed by a human editor.