Sara Duterte defense says names in OVP, DepEd confidential fund receipts are aliases

The names in the acknowledgment receipts for the Office of the Vice President (OVP) and the Department of Education’s (DepEd) confidential funds are aliases, Vice President Sara Duterte’s defense declared on Monday.

Senator Risa Hontiveros had asked Duterte’s camp whether the names were real or were aliases after Philippine Statistics Authority (PSA) Assistant National Statistician Marizza Grande testified on Monday that she found some names in the list of payees of the OVP “unusual.”

Grande, a witness for the prosecution, added that some signatories matched records of deceased individuals and minors in the PSA records.

“Given that it has become a material matter, we have to couch this answer that this is classified information, but these are in fact aliases,” defense lawyer Justin Gular said during the official’s impeachment trial.

“I hope you understand that in threshing out this matter, having in mind the reminder of the good presiding officer, we will do this at the appropriate time during our presentation of evidence,” Gular said.

“I will veer away from making conclusions of law or fact as of the moment,” he added.

Private Prosecutor Mae Divinagracia said that it is too late for the defense to say that the names are aliases.

“As I’ve repeatedly manifested, Your Honor, they were already given the opportunity. First time in n the answer and second time in the pre-trial,” she said.

“Precisely, we conducted pre-trial, Your Honor, so the parties can lay their cards on the table. And on the basis of the issues defined during the pre-trial, the prosecution worked on its case,” she added.

Divinagracia said that the defense has been invoking due process as if it was a “magic wand that could straightjacket the prosecution.”

She said the House Prosecution panel is also entitled to due process.

“We are entitled to know what we are working on. The theories of their case, Your Honor. We’re already at the eleventh hour, Your Honor. Wala pa rin kasiguraduhan— ano ba ‘yung position,” she said.

(We are entitled to know what we are working on. The theories of their case, Your Honor. We’re already at the eleventh hour, Your Honor. There is still no certainty—what is the position?)

Duterte’s lead counsel Sheila Sison said Divinagracia may have neglected the “basic and most essential idea of a fair trial.”

“And that is for the prosecution to first discharge its burden of proof. And until the prosecution hurdles that burden, then the defense may even remain silent. So I will not dignify anymore these complaints of having allegedly failing to disclose the defense position, etc., etc.,” she said.

Presiding Officer Francis “Chiz” Escudero said the prosecution may object to whatever the defense presents during its presentation.

“But at this juncture, neither can I force the defense to present their evidence-in-chief nor their theory because Atty. Sheila is correct and that they may even choose to file a demurrer and decide not to present any evidence anymore,” he said.

On cross-examination, Grande said that names, such as nicknames, are not considered illegal simply because they do not appear in the registration system of the PSA.

“Hindi po lahat ‘yun naka-capture din sa CRS, sir. And I think hindi naman po siguro illegal,” Grande said.

(Not everything is captured by the CRS. And I think they are not illegal.)

She affirmed that their absence from the CRS does not mean they are illegal.

During the interjection of Senator-Judge Joel Villanueva, Grande said there is no way to verify the identity of individuals who use aliases unless they are given the real names of the individuals.

“The only way is to provide kung sino po ang mga taong ito na gumagamit ng alias para ma-verify yung registered name,” Grande said.

(The only way is for [the agency] to provide the identity of the people who are using these aliases so we can verify their registered name.)

Meanwhile, Grande affirmed she cannot testify whether the names in the acknowledgment receipts of confidential funds do or do not belong to real people.

“You cannot in all certainty testify today whether these names do or do not belong to real and existing persons,” defense counsel Justin Gular said.

“I can only attest, sir, if these records are available in the database,” the witness responded. –NB, GMA News