BIR orders audit probe on Sara, husband

MANILA, Philippines — The Bureau of Internal Revenue (BIR) has ordered the issuance of Letters of Authority (LOAs) to audit Vice President Sara Duterte, following the determination that probable cause exists to warrant investigation, which adds pressure on her ongoing impeachment complaint over alleged misuse of public funds.

In a statement, the BIR said Duterte, her husband Manases Carpio and nine business enterprises linked to the couple are set to undergo a tax probe after the agency’s ”careful determination that probable cause exists to warrant a formal audit investigation of the subject taxpayers.”

An LOA allows BIR revenue officers assigned to each case “to examine the taxpayer’s books of accounts and other accounting records” to ensure tax compliance.

BIR Commissioner Charlito Martin Mendoza said the LOA document is the legal instrument of the BIR to initiate formal tax audits of any taxpayer.

”It is not a conclusion of liability, but it is a necessary step in determining the correct taxes due. Accountability begins with the consistent application of the law. Where there is a basis to investigate, the BIR will do so. And if evidence of tax violations exists, it is our duty to pursue the appropriate civil, administrative or criminal remedies,” he said.

The nine businesses subject to audit include Carpio Lawyers or previously Carpio & Duterte Lawyers, Zelta Matiem Salon, City Hall King Chow Foods Corporation, Davao Bounty Times Foods Corporation and Madayaw Fisheries Inc.

The Davao Emerging Taipans Corporation, Amianan Shores Inc., Cale88 Foods Corporation and Geometry Security and Investigation Agency Inc. are also included.

AMLA not a shield

A law professor reminded the general public, most particularly the camp of Vice President Sara Duterte, that Congress crafted and designed the Anti-Money Laundering Act to catch crooks, especially those in public service, not protect them.

“The AMLA was designed to catch criminals; it was never intended to be a shield for those being held to account by the Constitution itself. The hierarchy of our laws, the accountability of public officers is a supreme value that no statute can diminish,” lawyer Mel Sta. Maria explained.

The former law dean of the Far Eastern University made the same comment with regard to the Data Privacy Act, defending moves by lawmakers in carrying out their mandate in terms of impeachment proceedings.

“When the committee issues a subpoena for AMLC (Anti-Money Laundering Council) records, it is not acting as a mere statutory agency; it is performing a sovereign function. It is a textually demonstrable constitutional commitment,” he maintained, defending the House committee on justice.

“At the apex of our legal system sits the Constitution. It is the supreme law of the land. It is the sun around which all statutes – including the AMLA and the Data Privacy Act – must orbit,” Sta. Maria explained in a Facebook post.

The legal expert said the Constitution granted the House the exclusive power to initiate impeachment cases. He said these proceedings are sui generis (own class in itself), designed to hold the country’s highest public officials accountable and is “a sovereign command.”

“Even if the interpretation of the interplay between AMLA and other laws like the Bank Secrecy Law were eventually deemed erroneous, an honest error in the pursuit of a constitutional sovereign duty does not constitute a crime,” Sta. Maria pointed out.

‘Not an admission’

The camp of Manases Carpio, the Vice President’s husband, said the filing of criminal complaints against the Bangko Sentral ng Pilipinas (BSP), the AMLC and members of the House justice panel was “not an admission” of the flagged bank accounts during last week’s impeachment hearing.

In an interview with radio dzMM, Carpio’s spokesman Harlin Neil Abayon II maintained that his client was only exercising his rights.

“If you read the complaint, there’s no specific admission stated there. So, this is simply Atty. Mans enforcing his right, specifically the penal provisions in relation to the Anti-Money Laundering Act, Bank Secrecy Laws and the Data Privacy Act,” he said.

House committee on good government and public accountability chair and Manila 3rd district Rep. Joel Chua said Carpio’s lawsuits were only meant as a diversion. — Delon Porcalla, Bella Cariaso, Jose Rodel Clapano