Jauhn Etienne Villaruel

The Senate, sitting as an Impeachment Court, resumed its hearing Monday, August 3, 2026, regarding Article I of the case against Vice President Sara Duterte, concerning the alleged misuse, questionable liquidation, and systematic misappropriation of confidential funds.
The prosecution panel presented Roderick C. Wamil, a state auditor of the Commission on Audit-Intelligence and Confidential Funds Office (COA-ICFAO), as witness to identify and authenticate documents and prove other relevant and material matters to the impeachment of the Vice President.
Wamil was the one who audited the liquidation of confidential expenditures of the Office of the Vice President (OVP) covering December 21 to 31 2022, and 1st, 2nd, and 3rd quarters of 2023, as well as the Department of Education’s confidential expenditures during the first three quarters of 2023.Wendell D. Alinea, Senate Social Media Unit

Article (news)

David Dizon

ABS-CBN News

<div><span class="fr-img-caption fr-fic fr-dib" style="width:960px;display:block" width="960"><span class="fr-img-wrap"><img src="https://od2-image-api.abs-cbn.com/prod/editorImage/178693085058920260804-senate-impeachment-day12-SSMU-9 (10).jpg" style="width:960px;display:block;height:auto" class="fr-fic fr-dib" width="960"/><span class="fr-inner" style="text-align:left">The Senate, sitting as an Impeachment Court, resumed its hearing Monday, August 3, 2026, regarding Article I of the case against Vice President Sara Duterte, concerning the alleged misuse, questionable liquidation, and systematic misappropriation of confidential funds.<em> Wendell D. Alinea, Senate Social Media Unit/File</em></span></span></span></div><p>MANILA<strong> (UPDATE) </strong>— Day 16 of the impeachment trial of Vice President Sara Duterte may reach an important milestone with the testimonies of special disbursing officers Gina Acosta and Eduardo Fajarda.</p><p>Akbayan party-list lawmaker and impeachment prosecutor Chel Diokno said both officers could shed more light on the possible misuse of Duterte’s confidential and intelligence funds.</p><p>Acosta and Fajarda earlier told the House Committee on Good Government and Public Accountability that they turned over encashed OVP confidential funds directly to security officers assigned to the Vice Presidential Security and Protection Group upon the explicit instructions of Duterte.</p><p>“Medyo may milestone ito sa trial natin. Kung maalala ninyo sila rin ‘yung humarap noon sa hearings ng Kongreso. At sila rin ang may binitawang salita tungkol sa pera na ibinaba sa kanila bilang Special Disbursing Officer,” Diokno told DZMM.</p><p>He also refused to say if the prosecution will summon Colonels Raymund Dante Lachica and Dennis Nolasco, former head and deputy commander respectively of the VPSPG, as witnesses to the trial after receiving multimillion-peso cash disbursements of confidential funds.</p><p>“Ayoko naman din sabihin kung ano ang aming strategy…Itong darating na mga araw, very important stage ng trial natin ito,” he said, adding that he is happy with the presentation of prosecution witnesses so far.</p><div><br/></div><div><strong>SUB JUDICE</strong></div><div><br/></div><p>Meanwhile, the sub judice rule is also set to take the spotlight on Day 16 of the impeachment trial of Duterte.</p><div><a href="https://www.abs-cbn.com/news/nation/2026/8/17/what-lawyers-can-and-can-t-say-about-sara-duterte-s-impeachment-trial-0937">What lawyers can and can’t say about Sara Duterte’s impeachment trial</a></div><p>This, after Senate Impeachment Presiding Officer Chiz Escudero said he will make a ruling on enforcing the sub judice rule amid heated exchanges between the defense and prosecution panels during the trial.</p><p>House prosecutors earlier urged Escudero to enforce the rule barring parties and counsels from publicly discussing the merits of an ongoing case after Senator-judge Pia Cayetano posted a spliced video of her exchange with Diokno and after Duterte herself made a comment about the proceedings.</p><p>The defense, meanwhile, has asked private prosecutor Lorna Kapunan to show respect to a fellow member of the Bar while also calling out a Facebook post of private prosecutor Amando Virgil Ligutan about misleading questions.</p><p>Speaking to DZMM, Diokno said the Senate impeachment rules and existing jurisprudence bar lawyers and concerned parties from speaking about the merits of the case especially if it will influence the results.</p><p>He noted the rule must apply to all parties including senator-judges. “May requirement ang mga senator-judges na obserbahan nila ang political neutrality lalo dahil mahistrado sila so dapat maging patas ang pagpapasya nila,” he said.</p><p>“Kami po niniwala na lahat ng patakaran ng impeachment dapat mag-apply sa lahat ng covered nito. Kung whether you&#x27;re a senator-judge or lawyer of defense or prosecution, susunod dapat tayong lahat.”</p><p>In the interview, Diokno said he sees nothing wrong with Ligutan’s social media post since it only explains what the law says about misleading questions. </p><p>Officers of the court have a duty to explain to the public what is going on in the impeachment trial, he said.</p><div><br/></div><div><strong>RELATED VIDEO</strong></div><div><span class="fr-video fr-deletable fr-fvc fr-dvb fr-draggable" contenteditable="false" draggable="true"><iframe width="640" height="360" src="https://www.youtube.com/embed/HFtfkLF4u6E?&amp;wmode=opaque&amp;rel=0" frameBorder="0" allowfullscreen="" class="fr-draggable"></iframe></span> </div>

<p>Day 16 of the impeachment trial of Vice President Sara Duterte may reach an important milestone with the testimonies of special disbursing officers Gina Acosta and Eduardo Fajarda.</p>

Day 16 of the impeachment trial of Vice President Sara Duterte may reach an important milestone with the testimonies of special disbursing officers Gina Acosta and Eduardo Fajarda.

Impeach Trial Day 16 may reach milestone with disbursing officers testimony—Diokno

News

Entertainment

Lifestyle

Sports

Metro.Style

More

BINI

Sudoku

Word of the Day

Lotto

Horoscope

Nation

Impeach Trial Day 16 may reach milestone with disbursing officers testimony—Diokno

David Dizon,

ABS-CBN News

Published August 17, 2026 09:48 AM PHT

|

Updated August 17, 2026 10:41 AM PHT

Read More:

impeachment

sara duterte

gina acosta

sdo

confidential funds

chek diokno

dennis nolasco

Raymund Dante Lachica

ABS-CBN Newsletter

Your go-to source for the latest news, entertainment highlights, exclusive interviews, and updates on your favorite Kapamilya stars.

ABS-CBN Newsletter

Your go-to source for the latest news, entertainment highlights, exclusive interviews, and updates on your favorite Kapamilya stars.

Sign Up

I have read and agree to the Terms and Privacy Policy.

Haven't received our newsletter?

Check your inbox to verify and confirm your subscription. If you don’t see it, please check your spam or junk folder.

ABS-CBN is the leading media and entertainment company in the Philippines, offering quality content across TV, radio, digital, and film. Committed to public service and promoting Filipino values, ABS-CBN continues to inspire and connect audiences worldwide.

Corporate

Investors

Governance

International Distribution

Corporate

Governance

Investors

International Distribution

NPC Seal of Registration

Privacy Policy

AI Policy

Terms of Service

Advertise with Us

© 2026 ABS-CBN Corporation. All Rights Reserved.

NPC Seal of Registration

Privacy Policy

Terms of Service

AI Policy

Advertise with Us

© 2026 ABS-CBN Corporation. All Rights Reserved.

NPC Seal of Registration

Privacy Policy

Terms of Service

AI Policy

Advertise with Us

© 2026 ABS-CBN Corporation. All Rights Reserved.