Bicol Saro Party-list Rep. Terry Ridon highlighted during the House Committee on Justice's impeachment hearing Wednesday, March 4 the alleged P70-million increase in respondent Vice President Sara Duterte's net worth over a 16-year period.

Ridon made the revelation even as the justice committee deliberated on the impeachment complaint allegation that the Vice President had “unexplained wealth”.

While showing copies of statements of assets, liabilities, and net worth (SALN) through a monitor, the lawyer-solon told the panel that in 2008, Duterte--then vice mayor of Davao City--had a net worth of P18.493 million. This decreased slightly to P18 million in 2009.

“At this point… I will read into the record, madam chair, the totality of the net worth of the Vice President from 2008. [SALN] 2008, filed Dec. 31, 2008; net worth, P18,493,617. SALN 2009, net worth, P18,000,281,” he said.

"We have the references of the SALNs themselves…and some of the available public information relating to the SALN,” the Bicol Saro lawmaker answered when he was quizzed by committee chairperson, Batangas 2nd district Rep. Gerville "Jinky Bitrics" Luistro on the documents he was presenting.

“I will present for the record the most recent SALN that had been released by the Ombudsman, madam chair. I think it is something that can be flashed on the screen. But I think what should be noted is the original SALN net worth, which was P18 million,” he said.

Luistro then had the justice committee secretariat flash copies of VP Duterte’s 2023 and 2024 SALNs.

“Net worth po for 2023, P77,508,841. This is for 2023, madam chair," Ridon said.

For the 2024 SALN, the net worth was P88,512,370.22. "So we are submitting for the record because these are public records which our colleagues had actually asked for,” he stressed.

“And if we will base it from the original SALN [from] 2008 to the 2024 SALN, madam chair, it is an increase.. So, we leave it to the justice committee as to whether or not we would consider it as a case of unexplained wealth, which is essentially part of the impeachment offenses we would want to proceed with at this point,” he said.

A quick calculation shows that the net worth growth from 2008 to 2024 was 378 percent. Another way to look at the figures is having a net worth increase of P4.375 million year-on-year.

Duterte was elected vice president in May 2022. She officially began her term on June 30, 2022.

The Nathaniel Cabrera complaint--which contained the unexplained wealth allegation--along with the Joel Saballa et al complaint--was declared as "sufficient in substance" at the conclusion of Wednesday's hearing.

Ridon also noted that the language of the impeachment charge against Vice President Duterte in connection with alleged unexplained wealth was the same as with the impeachment of the late Supreme Court (SC) Chief Justice Renato Corona.

“We are stating it for the record because this is the precise wording of the Corona articles of impeachment, which had proceeded to the Senate and had resulted in a conviction. So, I think it is very clear that this is the process that we have to undertake and what the endorsers would want to undertake during the process of full proceedings can be undertaken,” he said.

He added that it “would be good had the annexes been there but that is is actually not in fact required for full impeachment proceedings to proceed".

Before Ridon made his revelation, some committee members including Cagayan de Oro City 2nd district Rep. Rufus Rodrigues demanded specifics like bank accounts to support the allegation that Duterte had amassed wealth beyond her legal income.

Luistro said the committee members should not expect the impeachment complaint filers and their endorsers to produce evidence of the deposits in specific banks at this stage of the impeachment process.

“They are constrained by the Bank Secrecy Law,” she said. She say it is the Senate, as an impeachment court, which can seek such evidence.