A billion-peso gap between declared wealth and flagged transactions means Vice President Sara Duterte and her husband cannot indefinitely shield their tax records from scrutiny, according to Manila Rep. Joel Chua.
Chua, who chairs the House committee on good government and public accountability and sits on the Committee on Justice, said the decision to leave the Bureau of Internal Revenue’s box of tax documents sealed during impeachment proceedings was a matter of strategy rather than an admission that the panel lacked authority to open it. He made the remarks during an Insider Podcast interview carried by Bilyonaryo News Channel.
Justice panel members have flagged a stark discrepancy in Duterte’s statements of assets, liabilities, and net worth. She declared a net worth of only P88.5 million and omitted cash on hand and bank deposits from her SALNs for six consecutive years — while the Anti-Money Laundering Council flagged P6.7 billion in covered and suspicious transactions tied to her accounts during her years in public office.
Chua argued that the House’s constitutional authority to initiate impeachment carries with it the power to craft its own rules and compel the production of records through subpoenas, making the acquisition of an impeachable officer’s income tax returns legally defensible — particularly where unexplained wealth is at issue.
“Ang basis ko kasi dito, unang una, doon sa Constitution, binibigyan kami ng kapangyarihan para gumawa ng rules. Doon sa rules namin sa Section 7, binibigyan kami ng kapangyarihan para mag-issue ng compulsory processes, which is itong subpoena, di ba. At itong ITR, ito yung resulta ng subpoena,” he said.
He acknowledged that the Duterte camp has repeatedly filed petitions challenging the justice committee’s jurisdiction over the tax records, which influenced the panel’s more cautious posture. With probable cause already established even without unsealing the box, Chua said the matter now rests with the Senate.
“Kaya lang siyempre sinasabi nga nila na mas maganda na na mag-ingat muna tayo. Kasi pagdating sa Senate, ‘yun pa rin naman ang issue eh,” he said.
Should the case reach trial in the upper chamber, senators sitting as an impeachment court would be in a position to open the sealed box and determine whether the taxes paid by the vice president correspond to the billions in transactions running through her and her husband Atty. Manases Carpio’s accounts.
“So eh kung ‘yun, nakita dun na mababa lang ‘yung mga binabayaran mong income tax, hindi nagma-match dun sa pumapasok sa transaction na bilyong-bilyon, saan mo nakuha yung bilyong-bilyong transaction?” Chua said.
On the tension between the tax code’s non-disclosure rules and the constitutional impeachment process, Chua was unambiguous: the Constitution supersedes any statutory provision when the two are in conflict.
“‘Yung impeachment, constitutional violation ang pinag-uusapan dito. Saka violation of law, betrayal of public trust, high crimes. So parang impossible naman na ito pa yung maging cover para makatakas yung mga tao na nagtatago sa batas,” he said.
He noted that the BIR commissioner’s argument — that confidentiality provisions bar disclosure even in impeachment proceedings — would, by the same logic, apply equally to Senate proceedings, where no legislative purpose underlies a trial either.
“Kasi kung ganoon ang argument ni BIR Commissioner, pagdating sa Senate, ibig sabihin hindi rin po pwede. … Hindi rin naman in aid of legislation yung trial doon,” Chua added.
The sealed box of tax records has been incorporated into the official records of the impeachment proceedings and is set to be transmitted to the Senate court if the House plenary votes to impeach the vice president.
