IN 10 YEARS / 'I OWN CORONA PROPERTY'
[PHOTO -COURTESY OF
BALITA.PH- Day 28 of Chief Justice Renato Corona's impeachment trial:
Supreme Court Chief Judicial Staff Officer Araceli C. Bayuga (right) and
70-year-old Demetrio C. Vicente take their oath as witnesses presented by the
defense panel during the 28th day of the impeachment trial of Supreme Court
Chief Justice Renato Corona on Tuesday]
MANILA,
MARCH 14, 2012 (INQUIRER) By
Christian V. Esguerra - Did impeached Chief Justice Renato Corona earn enough to
acquire properties, which, the prosecution panel claimed, were unexplained
wealth?
A day after being accused of delaying the proceedings, the defense panel on
Tuesday went straight to the second impeachment article—Corona's alleged failure
to publicly declare his statements of assets, liabilities and net worth
(SALNs)—and presented a key witness to testify on his sources of income.
Araceli Bayuga, a budget and disbursement officer of the Supreme Court,
testified that Corona had received a total of P21,636,781.45 in salaries,
allowances and other benefits, since he joined the tribunal in 2002 until last
year.
Corona's salaries from the same period amounted to a total of P5,872,859.82,
the witness said under direct examination by the lead defense counsel, Serafin
Cuevas.
Much of Corona's earnings came from allowances and other benefits he received
while sitting at the Presidential Electoral Tribunal, including such items as
"productivity enhancement benefit, Christmas cash gift, additional Christmas
cash gift (and) yearend cash gift."
Corona also received allowances for "clothing, representation, and
transportation" including "extraordinary and miscellaneous expense." He likewise
got longevity and "productivity incentive benefits."
A summary of these salaries and benefits was contained in a certification
issued by Bayuga as chief judicial staff officer of the cash collection and
disbursement division of the Supreme Court's fiscal management and budget
office.
Bayuga produced the certification in court as evidence for the defense.
"I reviewed and evaluated all the paid payroll pertaining to salaries,
allowances and other benefits received by the honorable Chief Justice from 2002
up to 2011," she said.
Income from 2002 to 2011
According to Bayuga, Corona's annual salary began at P353,045 in 2002,
increased to P485,100 in the next four years, before improving to P650,447.23 in
2010. Last year, the Chief Justice's salary amounted to P1,147,301.77
The defense presented Bayuga's testimony some two months after prosecutors
paraded in media interviews information about Corona's purported "45
properties."
Senator-judges later scolded them over the allegation, noting that only 24
properties were tackled in the actual impeachment trial.
Corona's camp insisted that there were only five properties under his name.
Among them were condominium units at The Bellagio and Bonifacio Ridge in Taguig
City, The Columns in Makati City, Burgundy Plaza in Quezon City, and the house
at Xavierville Subdivision, also in Quezon City.
In previous interviews, defense lawyer Ramon Esguerra said his camp had been
preparing evidence on Corona's allowances partly to prove that he had legitimate
sources of income to afford the properties.
While examining Bayuga, Cuevas noted that the prosecution earlier alleged
that there was no "alpha list covering the Chief Justice" from 2002 to 2005.
The witness produced a copy of the alpha list wherein "the names of the
official employees of the court and from whom taxes withheld were stated."
Witness incompetent
Bayuga said she had personally brought the lists to the Bureau of Internal
Revenue because "under revenue regulations, we have to submit (them)."
Private prosecutor Antonio Hernandez earlier objected to Bayuga's testimony
on the alpha list, saying she was "incompetent."
Senate President Juan Ponce Enrile, the presiding officer, overruled him.
Cuevas' direct examination was relatively quick. But Hernandez asked to be
allowed to cross-examine the witness today, a request Enrile promptly granted.
"This is the first time that we're seeing these documents," the private
counsel told the court, referring to Bayuga's certification and the alpha lists.
Senator Francis Pangilinan, a key ally of President Benigno Aquino III, later
questioned why Bayuga was allowed to testify despite the Supreme Court's
February 14 resolution supposedly preventing its officials and employees from
appearing in the impeachment court.
"My concern here is we now have a situation wherein the Supreme Court decides
when it will honor our subpoena and when it will ignore our subpoena," he
manifested on the floor.
"The only check on the possible excesses of the Supreme Court is in this
impeachment court. My fear is, now the only check is now being checked by the
entity that is supposed to be checked."
Subpoenaed earlier
But Enrile reminded Pangilinan that Bayuga had also been the subject of a
subpoena issued upon the request of the prosecution.
He said the witness complied and showed up at the Senate on February 1.
"So maybe, the matter that was the subject of her examination today, as well
as then, is not considered confidential by the Supreme Court," Enrile said.
Cuevas read a portion of the February 14 resolution, stating that "testimony
on matters external to their (Supreme Court employees') adjudicatory functions
and duties may be compelled by compulsory processes."
Bayuga was called as the second defense witness after Enrile announced that
he had turned down a request by Corona's lawyers to subpoena the chief
prosecutor, Representative Niel Tupas Jr., and other congressmen, citing
interparliamentary courtesy.
In the same manner, he noted that he had also refused prosecution pleas to
summon officials and employees of the Supreme Court, saying it was a coequal
branch of government.
Bernas will not testify
Fr. Joaquin Bernas, a noted constitutionalist, said in a TV news interview he
had not received an invitation to appear on behalf of the defense but added that
he would have turned it down. He said that as a commentator, he did not wish to
be identified with either the defense or the prosecution. With Cynthia D. Balana and Maila Ager
FROM MANILA TIMES
'I own Corona property' -Witness
Published : Wednesday, March 14, 2012 00:00 Article Views : 410
Written by : Ritchie A. Horario and Ruben D. Manahan 4th, Reporters
[PHOTO - Lead defense counsel Serafin Cuevas shows a document to
witness Demetrio Vicente ]
THE defense panel on Tuesday presented Demetrio Vicente who testified that he
is the owner of several properties that the prosecution earlier said belonged to
Chief Justice Renato Corona.
Vicente claimed that he bought several parcels of lots in Marikina Heights
from Cristina Corona, wife of the Chief Justice, for P509,989 in 1990. He said
he built a house on the property where he and his wife had resided for 22 years.
He claimed that he purchased the Coronas' property after he sold his house in
Philand Subd. in Quezon City (Metro Manila) for P3.5 million. He added that the
deed of sale was notarized in Makati City by Beatriz Mantoya.
However, it was found out that the Marikina property, which consists of
several lots and covered by eight titles, is still in the name of Cristina.
Vicente said that he has no money to have the property transferred to his name.
Vicente said that he trusted the Coronas, since he and the Chief Justice are
cousins.
Vicente presented documents to prove his ownership of the property, including
the Deed of Absolute Sale and tax receipts.
The prosecution earlier presented acting Marikina register of deeds Sedfrey
Garcia, who presented transfer certificates of titles (TCT) for seven lots
registered under the name of Cristina.
The lots include TCTs N-97119, N-97120, N-97121, N-97122, N-97123, N-97124,
N-97125.
Under intense questioning by the prosecution lawyers and senator-judges,
Vicente stuck to his story that he is the owner of the property, even daring the
senators to visit him in his home to prove that he actually resides there.
Although he and the Chief Justice are related, he said he found the property
through a real estate broker. He also admitted that he has not talked with
Corona for 20 years.
Lead defense lawyer Serafin Cuevas told the court that Vicente was presented
to show that the sale of the property is genuine and not a make-believe sale
which was earlier alleged by the prosecution.
Vicente in his testimony said that he has been paying the real property taxes
for the property even if the receipts were in the name of Cristina.
However, Sen. Alan Peter Cayetano pointed out that if the property was sold
in 1990, it was still listed in the chief magistrate's statement of assets,
liabilities and net worth (SALN) in 1993. The House panel, however, doubted
Vicente's testimony.
"The testimony of the witness brings to us more questions than answers," Rep.
Romero "Miro" Quimbo of Marikina City (Metro Manila), one of the spokesmen of
the House panel, said.
"The title remains under the name of Cristina Corona. This is a conjugal
property and this should have been declared in the Chief Justice's SALN," Quimbo
told reporters.
Quimbo said that Vicente's purchase of the land might be a hoax.
"It could be a simulated sale. It's a mystery why he has not transferred it
to his name after 20 years," he said.
He added that if Vicente is the real owner of the Marikina property and he
passes away, the title will be automatically transferred to his heir. "If
ownership is still in the name of Mrs. Corona, his [Vicente's] heir has no right
to claim the land of his father . . . Title always determines ownership, not
possession. Possession never ripens into ownership," he stressed.
P21 million in 9 years Another witness presented by the defense team told the
impeachment court that the Chief Justice earned over P21 million in salaries and
benefits in the past nine years in the judiciary.
Araceli Bayuga, chief judicial staff officer of the cash, collection and
disbursement division of the High Court, the defense panel's second witness,
presented a four-page document containing the salaries and benefits of the chief
justice.
Defense lead counsel Serafin Cuevas said that the witness was called in
connection with Article II of the impeachment complaint which pertains to the
alleged non-disclosure of the statements of assets, liabilities and net worth
(SALN) of the Chief Justice.
Bayuga took the witness stand to authenticate documents she issued showing
Corona's benefits and allowances. Cuevas explained that Bayuga will testify on
factual matters and not confidential issues.
In her testimony, Bayuga detailed Corona's salary, allowances and fringe
benefits from 2002 to 2010, which amounted to P21 million.
She said Corona's annual salary rose from P353,000 in 2002 to P1.1 million in
2011—a year after he was appointed chief magistrate.
Corona also received other benefits such as representation and transportation
allowance, additional cost of living allowance, productivity incentives,
anniversary bonus and Christmas cash gift.
She likewise submitted and authenticated the Alpha list of tax payment
records of Corona from 2002 to 2005, which she submitted to the Bureau of
Internal Revenue (BIR) in Intramuros, Manila.
The House prosecution panel failed to present the Alpha list for 2002 to 2005
saying that it did not exist.
But Bayuga clarified that the Alpha lists for 2004 to 2006 were received by
the BIR in Intramuros, Manila. The Alpha list details the income earned by a
local employee of a government agency.
Bayuga will resume her testimony on Wednesday.
Corona lawyers satisfied with testimony of witness
By Matikas Santos INQUIRER.net 8:54 pm | Tuesday, March 13th, 2012
MANILA, Philippines – The defense panel said Tuesday that they were very
satisfied with the testimony of Demetrio Vicente, who claimed to be the current
owner of several properties in Marikina City despite having been found to be
under the name of Cristina Corona, wife of Chief Justice Renato Corona.
Defense lawyer Jose Roy III said that Vicente had the "mark of
truthfulness" because he was "very clear, very consistent, very reliable."
"I'm sure he has been telling the truth," Roy said. "I think his behavior was
very straightforward and he clarified points that were difficult to understand,"
he added.
Roy added that Vicente was not afraid to lose the property even if it was
still under the name of Cristina because they are related, which means there was
a high trust level. Roy said that such transactions between relatives were "a
common story."
Vicente said in his testimony that he has been paying all the corresponding
real estate taxes since 1990, the time he acquired the properties, but has been
unable to have the property transferred to his name because he ran out of money
for the transfer tax.
"We think that [Vicente's testimony] very clearly explains the position of
the Corona's [with regards to the properties]," Roy said.
Lawyer Tranquil Salvador added that Vicente was clearly "not hiding
anything."
Salvador said that his testimony was very clear – that he had money to buy
the property and that he had been living there for at least 20 years.
Vicente was even very candid in saying that Cristina Corona was the one who
sold the property of her sister, Miriam Roco, through a special power of
attorney.
Salvador appealed to the prosecution to not force their argument anymore to
"give respect to the witness."
"There comes a point where we need to stop and accept what is true," Salvador
said.
"Let's not force it because his testimony is very clear and obvious," he
added.
Chief News Editor: Sol
Jose Vanzi
© Copyright, 2012 by PHILIPPINE HEADLINE
NEWS ONLINE
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