Prosecution Presents Acknowledgment Receipts in Sara Duterte Impeachment Trial

The 11th day of Vice President Sara Duterte's impeachment trial on Monday focused on the alleged misuse of confidential funds. The House prosecution panel presented acknowledgment receipts (ARs) and called Commission on Audit (COA) official Roderick Wamil to testify. Wamil stated that he served in the COA Intelligence and Confidential Funds Audit Office from 2014 to 2024 and noted that previous vice presidents, including Jejomar Binay and Leni Robredo, did not have confidential fund allocations. He testified that the Office of the Vice President (OVP) fell short of strict compliance with the joint circular governing the use of confidential funds during the last three months of 2022 and the first three months of 2023.

Prosecution lawyer Lorna Kapunan presented 15 boxes of evidence and questioned Wamil on 845 acknowledgment receipts. Some documents listed recipients with peculiar names, such as Mary Grace Piattos, Andy C. Lim, and Alejandro A. Pikit. Kapunan made several puns based on these names, which led to laughter in the gallery and an objection from the defense. The prosecution highlighted a specific instance where 125 million pesos was spent in just 11 days during the last quarter of 2022, questioning the physical possibility of such spending according to regulations.

Defense spokesperson Michael Poa described the presentation of the acknowledgment receipts as a planned move. Meanwhile, Bicol Saro party list Representative Terry Ridon suggested a disconnect between the Vice President's declared assets in her SALN and the expenses of her frequent foreign travels. Center lean outlets focused on the procedural highlights and the defense's reaction, while center left lean outlets emphasized the specific details of the evidence and the prosecution's questioning of the funds' destination.