Former LandBank branch manager Violeta Constantino testified before the Senate impeachment court on Wednesday, July 29, that the Office of the Vice President's (OVP) large cash withdrawals were "unusual" compared with transactions of other government agencies.

During questioning by Sen. Erwin Tulfo, Constantino said the OVP's Modified Disbursement System (MDS) account was transferred to the LandBank Shaw Boulevard branch in September 2022 after the office relocated to Pioneer Street in Mandaluyong City. 

Tulfo asked whether the volume of cash withdrawals made by the OVP was typical of government agencies.

"Wala po. Unusual po ito (There are none. This is unusual)," Constantino replied.

Pressed on why the branch did not question the unusually large withdrawals, Constantino explained that the transactions were accompanied by advance advice from the OVP and had gone through the required procedures. She also stressed that the bank did not consider them suspicious.

Tulfo also asked whether she knew the funds being withdrawn were intended for intelligence operations, to which she answered in the negative.

Although she acknowledged that bank personnel personally wondered about the purpose of the large cash withdrawals, she said they did not ask because the transactions were supported by the required advice documents.

Asked whether other government agencies maintained accounts at the branch, Constantino said many did, but none made similarly large cash withdrawals.

Meanwhile, Sen. Bam Aquino sought to clarify whether the OVP transactions were ever reported as suspicious under the Anti-Money Laundering Act (AMLA).

Aquino noted that Constantino had described the withdrawals as "unusual" and asked why they were not reported as suspicious transactions.

Constantino distinguished between "unusual" and "suspicious," saying the bank never doubted the legitimacy of the transactions.

"For this particular po, hindi naman po kami nag-doubt kasi alam namin po na legit po iyong transaction (For this particular transaction, we did not have any doubts because we knew it was a legitimate transaction)," she said.

She also declined to discuss whether any suspicious transaction report had been filed, citing confidentiality provisions under the AMLA, but maintained that, from the bank's perspective, the OVP withdrawals were not considered suspicious despite their unusual nature.

Constantino confirmed that four checks encashed at the branch while she was serving as branch manager were processed through the OVP's account. The checks presented before the impeachment court were dated December 20, 2022; February 6, 2023; April 25, 2023; and July 14, 2023.

Sen. Raffy Tulfo also posed several clarificatory questions to Constantino regarding the Office of the Vice President's (OVP) ₱125-million cash withdrawal.

Tulfo first sought to clarify Constantino's earlier testimony that only one person from the OVP had taken custody of the cash, noting that based on Bangko Sentral ng Pilipinas (BSP) estimates, ₱1 million in cash weighs about one kilogram, making it difficult for a single person to carry ₱125 million. Constantino explained that, to the best of her recollection, the cash was placed in three to four gym bags, and the bank provided a trolley to transport the bags out of the branch.

Tulfo stressed that the witness should be certain and precise in her testimony, emphasizing that the position of the Vice President was at stake in the impeachment trial. He also asked whether Land Bank had offered to deliver the cash directly to the OVP office.

Constantino replied that the bank had no memorandum of agreement covering cash delivery services for the OVP and that the office had not requested such an arrangement.