Pangilinan questions Davao City assessor's testimony in Sara Duterte impeachment trial

Sen. Francis Pangilinan on Monday challenged the credibility of Davao City Assessor Jaime Adalin, saying the official gave conflicting testimony about a property connected to Vice President Sara Duterte's declared assets, according to bnc.bilyonaryo.

The exchange took place as the Senate, sitting as an impeachment court, resumed Duterte's trial. The court is examining allegations of unexplained wealth and discrepancies in her statements of assets, liabilities and net worth (SALN), including whether the declarations accurately reflected properties acquired by her and her husband, lawyer Manases Carpio.

Adalin, who was called by the defense to testify on Davao City tax records, first confirmed that a property listed in Duterte's SALN matched the one covered by a deed of sale. He later became unsure after prosecutors showed a photograph of what appeared to be a dining facility.

The assessor explained that an earlier photograph shown to him by an appraiser carried no business name, and that the signage visible in the prosecution's image left him uncertain whether both pictures showed the same property.

"Clearly there are inconsistencies in your testimony… You say one thing and then you say another thing," Pangilinan told Adalin, adding that senators were left wondering which of his statements was true.

Separately, Sen. Bam Aquino asked House prosecution counsel Benjamin Tolosa Jr. how many properties Duterte allegedly failed to declare. Tolosa said prosecutors were looking into two allegedly undeclared properties, one in Davao City and another in the Island Garden City of Samal.

The defense had presented Adalin's testimony to help establish that the disputed property was properly reflected in Duterte's asset declarations.