Defense: CJ had means to purchase properties

MANILA, Philippines - A witness in the impeachment trial of Chief Justice Renato Corona was able to prove that he had the means to purchase several real estate properties, contrary to claims of prosecutors, his lawyers said yesterday.

On day 29 of the impeachment trial, lead defense counsel Serafin Cuevas said the testimony given by Supreme Court cash and disbursement division chief Araceli Bayuga showed that Corona earned a substantial income from the time he joined the SC as an associate justice in 2002 to the present as chief justice.

According to Bayuga, Corona was able to receive over P21 million in salaries, allowances and other emoluments from 2002 to 2011.

Asked by Sen. Antonio Trillanes IV why the defense presented Bayuga as a witness, Cuevas said it was “to show the different compensation, benefits and other allowances received by the Chief Justice” and “to explain at least the sources of the amounts that have gone into his income.”

“Because the other amounts of compensation, whether by means of allowance and so on, goes into the coffers of the Chief Justice, then it will explain the other deficiencies brought about by the evidence of the prosecution that he could not have acquired this amount of property because his income does not justify the acquisition thereof,” Cuevas said.

Apart from Bayuga, the defense panel also presented Senate Electoral Tribunal (SET) and House of Representatives Electoral Tribunal secretaries Irene Guevarra and Girlie Salarda to show that Corona had also received substantial compensation as member of the two bodies.

Guevarra, secretary of the SET, said Corona was with them for 18 months during which he got P20,000 in monthly allowance; P19,000 in extra-ordinary miscellaneous expense (EME), and P 81,000 in additional allowable expenses.

The prosecution panel, in its cross-examination of Bayuga, tried to show that the Chief Justice used some of the allowances given to him for personal purposes and that these amounts should not have been counted as part of his income.

Bayuga was repeatedly pressed by private prosecutor Antonio Hernandez to say that the allowances given to Corona for transportation and representation should only be used for those purposes.

However, Bayuga explained that she had no way of knowing how the funds had been used. She said the Chief Justice was not required to liquidate the disbursements because certifications on the use of the funds were already contained in the payrolls of the Supreme Court.

Asked by Hernandez if the funds are expected to be used only for their intended purpose, Bayuga agreed but reiterated that she does not know how the funds were actually used.

Defense panel spokesperson Karen Jimeno said the testimonies of Bayuga, Guevarra and Salarda only formed part of the bigger picture they wished to present before the impeachment court.

She said that the proof would be shown little by little and that the entire picture about his wealth would eventually unravel.

Lawyer Tranquil Salvador, another spokesman for the defense, said their witnesses were able to answer questions raised by the prosecution regarding Corona’s capacity to acquire various properties.