The head of the Office of the Ombudsman’s records office said Vice President Sara Duterte did not declare the acquisition costs for her business interests or the value of the shares of stocks in her statements of assets, liabilities, and net worth (SALNs) filed through the years.
Senate President Sherwin Gatchalian asked whether this could mean that Duterte’s net worth, which grew to P98.6 million in 2025, was “undervalued.”
Testifying in Duterte’s impeachment trial, Atty. Karen Batu, officer in charge of the Ombudsman’s Records Division, said Duterte listed several business interests for her and her husband Manases Carpio in the SALNs she filed from 2007 to 2012 and from 2016 to 2025, the years she was in public office.
Batu said there were no corresponding acquisition costs for these.
Private prosecutor James Alih asked, “So meron pong negosyo, pero walang deklaradong puhunan?”
Batu said that was what was stated in the SALN.
Alih noted Section 8 of Republic Act 6713 or the Code of Conduct and Ethical Standards for Public Officials and Employees, which states that the SALN should contain the personal property and their acquisition cost, as well as other assets such as investments and cash on bank or in hand.
Gatchalian asked if the absence of the acquisition cost meant that it was possible that Duterte’s net worth was undervalued.
“Kasi walang value yung mga corporations,” Gatchalian said, adding that the acquisition cost might be millions.
Batu said she cannot make that inference since the Office of the Ombudsman is only the repository of the records,
Gatchalian directed his question to Alih, who replied that it can be a possibility.
“Without concluding anything, yes, it can be a possibility. That’s why precisely, your honor, it has to be declared para po klaro at the onset kung ano po talaga iyong corresponding na amounts or value nung mga shares of stocks,” Alih said.
Gatchalian said that if the corporations have no value in the SALN, then the true net worth could not be known.
Batu confirmed, during questioning by Presiding Officer Sen. Francis Escudero and defense counsel Justin Gular, that the SALN form does not have a space or column for acquisition costs in the separate section for business interest and financial connections.
Escudero asked why the SALN form did not include a line or column for the acquisition costs for businesses if it was required to be declared under the law.
Alih said stocks are considered personal property and should be declared in the personal property portion of the SALN.
When Escudero said there is a separate table for business interests and personal properties, Alih said the prosecution’s understanding is that shares of stock are considered personal properties, like investments.
He also said the personal properties have to be itemized in the SALN.
Escudero said that that was not in the guidelines.
Sen. Francis Pangilinan asked Batu to confirm that there is a separate personal property declaration in the SALN form that requires the acquisition cost.
Shares would be considered personal property, Pangilinan said.
“Oo, wala sa business interest yung acquisition cost, pero kung considered personal property ang shares, merong acquisition cost requirement doon sa personal properties,” he said.