CAGAYAN de Oro City— A defense witness in Vice President Sara Duterte’s impeachment trial drew sharp criticism from senators and judges after giving unclear answers about a trip to China and a Davao City property linked to her husband, Mans Carpio.
Sen. Erwin Tulfo warned Davao City Assessor Jaime Adalin that he could be cited in contempt for avoiding questions about the trip, while Sen. Raffy Tulfo accused him of lying about the use of a property bearing the Prime Bistro sign.
Duterte’s lawyers presented Adalin on the 40th day of the trial to identify city tax records and support their claim that the disputed property in Matina Crossing, Davao City, was disclosed in the vice president’s Statement of Assets, Liabilities and Net Worth (SALN).
During cross-examination by House prosecutor Atty. Benjamin Tolosa Jr., Adalin said he was appointed city assessor in 2017, when Duterte was mayor of Davao City.
Tolosa then asked whether Adalin was among the city officials who went to China in November 2025 on an all-expenses-paid trip allegedly sponsored by the Chinese government.
“I think that is irrelevant. I think hindi ko talaga ma-recall,” Adalin replied.
Sen. Vicente Sotto III said the question was important in assessing the witness’s credibility.
Presiding officer Sen. Francis “Chiz” Escudero then asked Adalin to clarify whether he could not remember the date or the trip itself.
“Ang tanong ay simple, ano po ang hindi ninyo naalala? Yung petsa o yung biyahe?” Escudero asked.
“Yung petsa siguro,” Adalin replied.
“Pero nagbiyahe po kayo sa China noong mga ganong panahon?” Escudero pressed.
“Siguro. Again, I don’t have the record. Hindi mo naman memorize yung mga lakad mo, noh,” Adalin said.
Erwin Tulfo reminded the witness that he was under oath and warned him against evading questions.
“Para po tayong niloloko ng testigo na ito. Sir, may I remind you that you are under oath. Yung ginagawa ninyong kengkoy ang inyong testimonya, bawal po ’yan. We can cite you in contempt.
We are serious here,” Tulfo said.
“Tinatanong kayo kung nakapunta kayo, ayaw ninyong sabihin,” he added. “Yung pagsisinungaling po ay nasa kaniya iyan, may consequences po iyan.”
Raffy Tulfo also challenged Adalin’s testimony that the Prime Bistro property was classified as commercial but used as a residence.
“Natawa ako kanina, nakalagay na nga Prime Bistro, commercial ’yun, ibig sabihin. Ang sinabi niya kanina, commercial pero ginagamit as residential,” Raffy Tulfo said. “He is lying through his teeth. Lumilitaw na para bang pinagloloko tayo.”
“Nakalagay na nga Prime Bistro, kumbaga iyon ay negosyo, dining,” he added. “So naglagay ka ng dining, naglagay ka ng karatula para tutulugan mo lang? Parang iyon ang pinapalabas ng witness.”
The National Bureau of Investigation previously identified Prime Bistro as a property registered to Carpio.
Duterte’s SALN listed the property’s acquisition cost at P10 million and its fair market value at P82,000.
Earlier in the trial, the prosecution presented a deed showing that Carpio bought a 379-square-meter property in Juna Subdivision, Matina Crossing, for P6 million in July 2024. The property was mortgaged the following month for P8 million.
Davao City’s register of deeds testified that the property’s price, location and mode of acquisition did not clearly match any entry in Duterte’s 2025 SALN.
