Baste Duterte to testify in Senate trial not as VP’s kin but as mayor

MANILA, Philippines — Davao City Mayor Sebastian “Baste” Duterte was subpoenaed to testify in the Senate impeachment court not because he’s the brother of Vice President Sara Duterte but because, in his position, he might be able to explain alleged transactions between the city government and the company in which her sister had reportedly declared a financial interest.

As House trial spokesperson Zia Alonto Adiong of Lanao del Sur clarified in a statement issued on Sunday: “He is not being called because he is the brother of VP Sara. He is being called because he may have relevant personal and official knowledge concerning matters that form part of the prosecution’s Article II presentation.”

The second impeachment article accuses the vice president of having amassed unexplained wealth.

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The impeachment court has asked Baste to produce records involving transactions between the Davao City government and Gencorp Industries Inc. from 2020 to the present.

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READ: Impeachment court subpoenas Baste Duterte

Gencorp is among the companies in which the vice president reportedly declared a financial interest in her statement of assets, liabilities, and net worth (SALNs).

The mayor has also been directed to bring records of transactions with entities that own or operate a Jollibee branch or establishment during the same period.

According to their statements, prosecutors said they would want to find out whether Gencorp had transactions with the Davao City government during Baste’s tenure as mayor and the circumstances surrounding any such dealings.

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Hostile witness

During the “Saturday News Forum” at Dapo Restaurant in Quezon City, Benjamin “Jay” Tolosa Jr., House prosecution counsel and legal spokesperson, said prosecutors would also ask the impeachment court to declare Baste a hostile witness once he testifies.

Tolosa said the prosecution would have to show that Baste’s interests would be adverse to those of the party calling him before the court could grant the request.

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A hostile-witness declaration would give prosecutors greater latitude in examining Baste, including allowing them to ask leading questions. The final determination rests with the impeachment court.

Baste’s expected testimony forms part of the prosecution’s shift from the vice president’s own wealth declarations to independent corporate and government records under the second impeachment article.

That article alleges, among others, that Duterte failed to divest and continued participating in businesses while serving as vice president.

Other witnesses

Prosecutors are expected to first present officials from the Civil Service Commission (CSC), Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC), and Philippine Government Electronic Procurement System (PhilGEPS).

Gerardo del Rosario, director of the SEC Company Registration and Monitoring Department, is expected to authenticate corporate records involving companies in which Duterte declared business interests.

PhilGEPS Division Chief Rendell Sopeña, meanwhile, has been directed to produce procurement records involving contracts between Gencorp and government agencies from 2020 to the present.

The records are expected to allow prosecutors to compare Duterte’s SALN declarations with independent corporate and government documents.

Baste was initially ordered to appear before the impeachment court on Wednesday, Sept. 23, along with lawyer Gary Samonte and Police Maj. Jerrickson Sangalang.

The schedule could change, however, because the prosecution and defense are set to present oral arguments that day on the disputed voting threshold for Duterte’s possible conviction.

READ: Sara Duterte’s business interests, gov’t deals face scrutiny

According to the court, it could withdraw the subpoenas for Baste, Samonte, and Sangalang and reissue them depending on how the earlier witnesses and the Sept. 23 proceedings unfold.

Samonte is expected to testify on records from the Philippine Health Insurance Corp. (PhilHealth) Regional Office XI involving companies being examined by prosecutors.

Sangalang, who’s assigned to the Philippine National Police Firearms and Explosives Office, is expected to testify on firearms registered under the names of the vice president and her husband, lawyer Manases Carpio.

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Baste’s appearance would make him one of the most closely related witnesses to testify so far in the impeachment proceedings, as prosecutors move deeper into the vice president’s corporate and financial interests under Article II. /atm