00:00Transaction code STRA dated December 5, 2024, involving a transaction with BDO Life Assurance Company, Inc.
00:09Ano po ba ang dahilan bakit ito na report a suspicious transaction?
00:14Based on records, Your Honor, the reason indicated is malversation of public funds and property, Your Honor.
00:22Maaari niyo po ba ulit basahin ang nakasaad sa narating?
00:26At this point, Your Honor. Again, this is why we precisely objected to the use of the slide, Your Honor,
00:35because this is already processed, Your Honor, and already involves an interpretation.
00:41It creates to the public that the account or the suspicious transaction for Sara Duterte Carpio
00:48is involved in the malversation of public funds and property or confidential funds,
00:53when in fact, it is only a note on the bottom portion, Your Honor, which is based only on news
01:04articles.
01:04And the witness does not have any personal knowledge on that, Your Honor.
01:09We understand, not yet finished, we understand, Your Honor, that he's merely reading it for the record, Your Honor,
01:15but it creates the same effect, Your Honor, as to the viewing public who cannot distinguish Your Honor.
01:21So, it is highly unfair, Your Honor, to present it this way, similar to the previous slides,
01:28that the respondent accused Sara Duterte is involved in these subject matters, Your Honor.
01:33May I ask, Attorney Ronel, or Attorney May, for that matter,
01:41is confidential funds found in the report itself?
01:46Yes, Your Honor, that's the reason I'm requesting the witness, Your Honor, to read the narrative, because...
01:51In open and closed parenthesis.
01:54No, Your Honor, it's not in open, but the word confidential fund, it's mentioned, Your Honor.
02:00So, this is merely a synopsis of the reason why it was reported as a suspicious transaction.
02:11Yes, Your Honor, both malversation of public funds and property and confidential funds are mentioned in the very same report.
02:18Attorney Ronel, who prepared this document, this actual report?
02:22It was prepared by MLC?
02:25This one po is just, this is a suspicious transaction report po submitted by BDO Life Assurance Company.
02:33So, it was the bank that submitted it?
02:36Yes, Your Honor.
02:37So, yung summary nakikita nyo, do you see it?
02:41Yung narinakalagay na malversation of public funds and property, confidential funds,
02:46that is part of the narration of the suspicious transaction made by BDO.
02:51Is that correct?
02:52Yes, Your Honor, BDO Life Assurance Company.
02:54Like the previous one that you read that based it on a newspaper article, it was part of the submission
02:59of BDO.
03:00By, I can't recall po the institution, but it was submitted by the covert person.
03:05So, can you read in its entirety what is written in the reason na sinamarizes malversation of public funds and
03:16property,
03:17open, close, parenthesis, confidential funds, for the court to understand
03:21if it is an accurate synopsis of what is actually written to describe why this transaction was classified as suspicious?
03:32So, Your Honor, I'm reading based on the records po.
03:35So, open bracket one, close bracket.
03:39The client is alleged to have misappropriated confidential funds to her office in the office of the Vice President,
03:46open, parenthesis, OVP, close, parenthesis, period.
03:50Goa has reportedly disallowed PHP 73M of confidential funds in 2022 under the OVP, period.
04:00Open, parenthesis, Rappler, 20240827, close, parenthesis.
04:07Open, bracket number two, close, bracket.
04:10Other accusations heard against her include involvement in a drugs syndicate along with her father, Rodrigo Duterte.
04:19Open, parenthesis, former Philippine president, close, parenthesis.
04:23Open, parenthesis, inquirer, 20241113, close, parenthesis, Your Honor.
04:31That's the narrative with...
04:33Now, in your experience, Attorney Ronel, in reporting suspicious transactions, do banks rely on newspaper reports and articles and or
04:41similar sources?
04:43They may rely, Your Honor, but usually whether they will exclusively rely in assessing the account would vary
04:52because under our reporting guidelines, the threshold is suspicion because it's a suspicious transaction po.
05:00But it's based on the appreciation of the reporting entity or reporting person, profile of the client, and yung pong,
05:08yung nakikita po na adverse news po like this.
05:12So, hindi po kayo nagsulat nito, report ito na natanggap nyo mula sa covered institution?
05:18Yes, Your Honor.
05:19This is a verbatim reproduction of that?
05:21Yes, Your Honor.
05:21Okay.
05:22Your Honor.
05:23Yes, Attorney Mark.
05:24Even then, Your Honor, and it's clear, Your Honor, that the slide is not a verbatim representation of what was
05:33read by Attorney Buenaventura.
05:35This is already processed.
05:36It doesn't indicate that it's from Rappler, from a news article.
05:39It just says malversation of public funds and property confidential funds.
05:43And it's under the suspicious transaction reports of Sarah Duterte Carpio.
05:48So, for an untrained, Your Honor, if I see this slide, it necessarily associates Sarah Duterte to malversation.
05:56It's highly improper and unfair, Your Honor.
05:57That's why the court clarified where it came from and if it is inaccurate enough of a synopsis or summary
06:04of what was written to clarify, not only to the public, but more especially to the senator judges,
06:13that it should be as read by the witness.
06:16And this is only for visual or demonstration purposes and nothing more.
06:21Because what the witness read is actually what is contained in the report coming from the covered institution, whether it
06:28is actually BDO or some other bank.
06:31Would that be correct, Attorney Ronella?
06:32That is correct, Your Honor.
06:34So, the objection is overruled, counsel.
06:36Witness, um...
06:37Your Honor.
06:38Yes, Attorney Mark.
06:39We'll just register a continuing objection, Your Honor, to the use of these props, Your Honor.
06:43Thank you, Your Honor.
06:44But each time, rest assured, Attorney Mark, each time the presiding officer will make sure that the synopsis, summary, or
06:51whatever is written in the demonstration or visual
06:53will be an accurate representation of the small letters in the actual document.
07:03We appreciate that.
