Davao City assessor warned of contempt over answers on China trip in VP Duterte trial

Davao City Assessor Jaime Adalin faced a possible contempt citation on Monday after senator-judges in Vice President Sara Duterte's impeachment trial took issue with his uncertain answers about an alleged trip to China, according to Bilyonaryo News Channel.

Adalin, presented by the defense as its first witness, was questioned by House prosecution counsel Benjamin Tolosa Jr. about whether he had joined a November 2025 trip to China that was allegedly funded by the Chinese government. He initially said he could not recall the trip.

Impeachment court presiding officer Francis Escudero then asked Adalin to clarify whether he had forgotten the trip itself or only its date. Adalin first suggested he may have forgotten the date, then acknowledged he may have travelled to China around that time, saying he did not have the record and that one does not memorise all of one's trips.

Sen. Erwin Tulfo accused the witness of evading the question and reminded him that he was under oath. "We can cite you in contempt. We are serious here," Tulfo said, adding that treating testimony lightly was not allowed.

Adalin was appointed city assessor in 2017, when Duterte was mayor of Davao City. The defense called him to identify city tax records and to support its position that a property in Matina Crossing was properly declared in the Vice President's statement of assets, liabilities and net worth (SALN).

The National Bureau of Investigation had earlier identified Prime Bistro as a property registered to Duterte's husband, lawyer Manases Carpio. Duterte's SALN listed an acquisition cost of P10 million, while prosecution records showed Carpio bought a 379-square-meter lot in Juna Subdivision, Matina Crossing, for P6 million in July 2024 and mortgaged it for P8 million the following month.

Davao City's register of deeds had previously testified that the property's price, location and mode of acquisition did not clearly match an entry in Duterte's 2025 SALN. The defense is seeking to address these apparent discrepancies through Adalin's testimony.