“And you also have no information or personal knowledge whether the Vice President is actively involved in the management or decision-making of any of these 16 corporations?” ~Defense Attorney Justine Nicol Gular
“No information.” ~SEC Prosecution Witness Gerardo Del Rosario
During a cross-examination, an SEC official admitted that corporate records transmitted against Vice President Sara Duterte came from House requests.
SEC Director Gerardo del Rosario testified that his office compiled documents upon the request of the House panel. He acknowledged that the commission merely serves as a repository of third-party corporate filings.
Defense counsel Attorney Justin Nicol Gular questioned the witness regarding the origin and completeness of the corporate summaries.
Unsigned, Missing Seal and Logo
Gular revealed that key corporate summaries submitted by the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) were undated, unsigned, and missing official agency seals or logos.
SEC Director Gerardo Del Rosario admitted under oath that the two documents—spanning 27 and 26 pages respectively—contained no formal SEC markings despite being prepared by his office upon the request of the House prosecution panel.
The defense highlighted that a five-member SEC team compiled and processed over 3,000 pages of records across 16 corporations in just three days, receiving the request on Friday, September 11, 2026, and delivering the transmittal on Monday, September 14, 2026.
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Furthermore, Gular pointed out that while the SEC’s September 14 transmittal letter referenced requests only for General Information Sheets and Audited Financial Statements, the agency’s summaries included unrequested information on articles of incorporation and incorporators.
Prosecution Attorney Erwin Matib objected to the line of questioning as misleading, arguing that an earlier request letter dated September 10, 2026, had explicitly covered articles of incorporation.
However, Presiding Officer Francis Escudero overruled the objection, allowing Del Rosario to answer after Gular noted that the defense had never been furnished with the September 10 request letter.
Umamin si Del Rosario
Under cross-examination, Del Rosario stated that the SEC possesses no personal knowledge regarding daily corporate operations. He confirmed that the commission holds no record of the Vice President attending any board or committee meetings.
Furthermore, the SEC witness admitted having no records concerning the personal income or SALN filings of public officers.
Gular emphasized that legal reporting obligations fall directly upon the corporation, rather than individual stockholders. The witness affirmed that the Vice President was never the corporate secretary responsible for swearing to general information sheets.
When asked directly about earnings, Del Rosario answered, “Wala po” regarding records of personal income.
Additionally, Del Rosario agreed that the SEC has no information showing whether corporate dividends were declared.
The witness testified that five SEC staff members processed three thousand document pages within three calendar days. Del Rosario acknowledged that the transmittal letter dated September 14, 2026, contained no request for articles of incorporation.
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