Corona: I declared everything in my SALN

As he took the witness stand in his own impeachment trial, Chief Justice Renato Corona on Tuesday declared before the Senate, sitting as the impeachment court, that he declared everything in his statement of assets, liabilities, and net worth (SALN).

 

"Lahat ay nakadeklara sa aking SALN. Wala po akong tinago na ari-arian na di ko nilagay sa aking SALN," Corona told the impeachment court.

 

For one, Corona maintained that he only owns five of the 45 properties initially alleged by the prosecution team to be his. He said these five properties were declared in his SALN.

 

"Wala po akong 45 properties...lilima lang po ang akin diyan," he said.

 

"May nilabas din po sa media na marami raw kaming ari-arian sa Amerika, kahit na isa wala naman po napatunayan kasi wala naman po kami ari-arian sa Amerika. Yung listahan kasing peke ng LRA list na 45 properties," he added.

 

The chief justice also explained that he only declared the assessed and fair market values and not the acquisition cost of his properties in his SALN because it was the sensible thing to do.

 

"As far as the SALN is concerned, mas reliable po ang values na nakalagay sa tax declaration [kundi] every year kailangan ng appraiser. Di naman siguro yun ang intensyon ng SALN law," he said. No dollar accounts?

 

Aside from the real properties, Corona also denied that he owned several dollar bank accounts, none of which were in his SALN.

 

"Sabi ni Ombudsman Conchita Carpio-Morales, ako raw po ay may $10 million hanggang $12 million po sa 82 bank accounts. Wala po ako kilalang may 82 bank accounts, ewan ko lang po kay Ombudsman Morales baka siya meron," he said.

 

He said that the Anti-Money Laundering Council (AMLC) report from which Morales based her information, was not even authenticated.

 

"Walang predicate crime, walang imbestigasyon, walang court order, walang notice sa depositor. Clearly, it came from a polluted source," he said.

 

Because of this, he said he called in his own team of accountants to study the list divulged by Morales.

 

"Malinaw na malinaw po na [iyung] kanyang testimony was one of deception, exaggeration and misrepresentation," he said.

 

As of posting time, Corona is presenting his own powerpoint presentation in connection with the alleged dollar accounts. — RSJ, GMA News