Sara Duterte has ‘loose investment’ in Jollibee Times Square branch, GenCorp counsel testifies
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MANILA, Philippines — Vice President Sara Duterte had a “loose investment” in a Jollibee branch in Davao City operated by GenCorp Industries, Inc., but no ownership stake in the corporation itself, the company's legal counsel testified during the impeachment trial on Wednesday.Suzette Balucanag-Punay, corporate counsel of GenCorp and Metro City Chow Foods Corp., said Duterte's investment was limited to the Jollibee Times Square branch and stemmed from an earlier investment in Davao Bounty Times Foods Corp. in 2007, which previously operated the outlet."It is an investment in the specific branch only, meaning it is only in Times Square branch and not the whole corporation,” Balucanag-Punay told the Senate impeachment court.She disclosed that Duterte received a total of P2.14 million in payments from GenCorp between 2022 and 2025, disputing a prosecution forensic report that attributed P55.7 million in alleged undeclared income from the company to the Vice President in 2023.Defense counsel Justin Nicol Gular presented a portion of the report prepared by prosecution forensic financial analyst Alexander Cabrera, which placed Duterte's alleged undeclared income from GenCorp at P55,714,292 for 2023.Balucanag-Punay rejected the computation, saying Duterte received only P555,750 from GenCorp that year as a return of capital, based on a transaction summary prepared by the company's accountant.She said Duterte received P337,500 from GenCorp in 2022, P555,750 in 2023, P612,419.14 in 2024, and P636,700 in2025.The total amounted to P2,142,369.14.Earlier in her testimony, Balucanag-Punay told the impeachment court that Duterte had no shareholdings or corporate position in GenCorp from 2022 to 2025.
Read the full story at The Manila Times.
