Davao City accountant Bajan confirms December 2025 China trip at VP Duterte impeachment trial

Davao City accountant Vingelin Bajan, a defense witness in the impeachment trial of Vice President Sara Duterte, confirmed on Tuesday that she was among the local officials who travelled to China late last year, according to GMA News.

Bajan made the admission on the 41st day of the trial while being cross-examined by private prosecutor Mae Divinagracia. She told the court the trip took place in the first week of December.

Asked by Divinagracia whether she knew that other Davao City officials had also gone to China in January this year, Bajan said she could only speak about her own travel. When the prosecutor asked, in a lighter moment, whether galunggong from China tasted better, Bajan replied that it was cheaper.

During an interjection by Senator-Judge Risa Hontiveros, Bajan said the trip with her friends was personal and that the group paid for it themselves. She described it as a reward for themselves after a busy stretch at work, adding that seeing Shanghai and Beijing was on her bucket list.

Bajan also told the court that no one invited the group to China and that they planned their itinerary on their own. Hontiveros then asked her to submit a copy of her travel authority for the trip to the impeachment court.

Bajan's testimony followed that of Davao City assessor Engineer Jaime Adalin, the defense's first witness, who was questioned on Monday by the prosecution and several senator-judges about his own China travel. GMA News reported that Adalin initially said he could not recall details of the trip, but after repeated questioning admitted he went to China in January 2026 for personal reasons.