MANILA, Philippines — The defense on Tuesday challenged the evidentiary basis of Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) official Gerardo del Rosario’s testimony as the impeachment trial of Vice President Sara Duterte entered its 28th day, focusing on the limits of his knowledge of her alleged business interests.
During cross-examination by defense lawyer Justin Nicol Gular, Del Rosario, director of the SEC’s Company Registration and Monitoring Department, acknowledged that his testimony was based solely on corporate documents in SEC and a list of companies provided by the House of Representatives.
Del Rosario also confirmed that he had no access to the contents of Duterte’s Statements of Assets, Liabilities and Net Worth (SALNs), or those of other public officials, except his own.
The defense further established that the House prosecution panel, through Rep. Gerville Luistro, asked the SEC to prepare summaries of corporate records involving companies in which Duterte allegedly held interests.
Del Rosario said the SEC received the request on Sept. 11, 2026 and completed the compilation by Sept. 14. The resulting documents covered about 3,000 pages.
The defense also questioned the prosecution’s focus on the absence of dividend declarations in some companies linked to Duterte.
Gular cited Section 42 of the Revised Corporation Code, which provides that a stock corporation’s board may declare dividends out of unrestricted retained earnings. Del Rosario agreed that the provision does not make the declaration of dividends automatic or mandatory. Under the law, the board has the power to declare dividends, subject to the conditions provided in the statute.
Del Rosario likewise acknowledged that his knowledge was limited to the corporate documents available to the SEC. He said he had no personal knowledge of whether Duterte actually held substantial stockholdings or a substantial financial interest in any particular business beyond what was reflected in those records.
The defense also pressed the witness on the business interests of Duterte’s husband, lawyer Manases Carpio.
Del Rosario testified that the Code of Conduct and Ethical Standards for Public Officials and Employees, or Republic Act (RA) 6713, requires public officials to disclose their own business interests and financial connections as well as those of their spouses. The law itself does not categorically prohibit a public official’s spouse from owning or operating a business.
The cross-examination came a day after Del Rosario testified that SEC records showed Duterte remained a director of Metro City Chow Foods Corp. after she assumed the vice presidency in 2022, with her directorship reflected in the company’s General Information Sheets through 2025.
