House Senior Deputy Minority Leader and Mamamayang Liberal Party-list Rep. Leila de Lima on Sunday said the reported plan of lawyer Manases Carpio, husband of Vice President Sara Duterte, to file criminal charges against government agencies and lawmakers indicates fear of the evidence presented in the impeachment proceedings.
Carpio is reportedly set to file a complaint against the Bangko Sentral ng Pilipinas (BSP), the Anti-Money Laundering Council (AMLC), and members of the House Committee on Justice, citing alleged violations of the Anti-Money Laundering Act, bank secrecy laws, and the Data Privacy Act.
“Sa ginagawa nila ngayon, halatang-halata na nababahag ang buntot nila na sagutin ang mga alegasyon, at gusto na lang pagtakpan o ilihis lagi ang isyu. Hindi puwedeng gawing panangga lang ang korte sa kaduwagan nila,” De Lima said.
De Lima maintained that the House Committee on Justice acted within the law, emphasizing that impeachment proceedings are not covered by the restrictions of the Bank Secrecy Law, as these are considered sui generis or unique in nature.
“Karapatan nila ’yan, tulad ng ginawa nilang pagdulog sa Korte Suprema at Quezon City Regional Trial Court para pigilan na naman o ilihis ang isyu sa ginagawang pagdinig sa impeachment complaints laban kay VP Sara,” De Lima said.
The solon added that she would wait for the official complaint before issuing a more detailed response.
De Lima maintained that the House Committee on Justice acted within the bounds of the law during the hearings, which included discussions of what she described as “suspicious and covered” financial transactions linked to the Vice President.
“But, as far as the House Committee on Justice is concerned, the proceedings cannot be considered violative of any law. Cases of impeachment, being sui generis, are not covered by the prohibition under the Secrecy of Bank Deposits Law. Hearing to determine probable cause po ang isinasagawa sa mga validly initiated complaints as referred by the House itself and acted upon by the Committee on Justice,” she said.
She also cited Republic Act No. 9160, or the Anti-Money Laundering Act, which requires banks to report suspicious transactions to the AMLC and explicitly states that such reporting does not violate bank secrecy rules.
According to De Lima, the committee subpoenaed records of suspicious and covered transactions, not the actual bank accounts, and disclosure restrictions apply mainly to bank personnel.
“Under this law, covered institutions – most notably banks – are required to report suspicious transactions to the AMLC, and such reporting is expressly declared as not violative of the Secrecy of Bank Deposits Law. Klaro naman na ang pina-subpoena ng Committee on Justice ay records of suspicious and covered transactions ni VP Sara at ng kanyang asawa – hindi mismong bank accounts. Also, the prohibition on disclosure applies only to officers and employees of banks and banking institutions,” she added.
“The fact that evidence of ill-gotten wealth was exposed in the course of the impeachment proceedings does not make such exposure criminal. It is a direct consequence of impeachment as an accountability mechanism,” she said.
She also assured that lawmakers would not be intimidated by the planned legal action. “Kung iniisip nila na sa pagsasampa ng kaso laban sa atin ay masisindak nila tayo, o na magdadalawang-isip o titigil tayo sa paghahanap ng katotohanan at pananagutan sa mabibigat na alegasyon laban kay VP Sara, imposibleng mangyari ’yan. Tuloy-tuloy lang tayo sa pagtupad ng ating mandato sa taumbayan,” she said.
In the April 22 hearing, the AMLC confirmed that at least 18 transactions linked to Duterte and her family matched records of covered and suspicious transaction reports cited in an affidavit by former senator Antonio Trillanes IV.
The agency also disclosed that banks had flagged a total of P6.7 billion in covered and suspicious transactions involving accounts associated with the Vice President and her husband.
