Henares laughs off Cuevas' cross-examination
MANILA, Philippines - Bureau of Internal Revenue (BIR) Commissioner Kim Henares has laughed off the grilling she underwent from the head defense lawyer of Supreme Court Chief Justice Renato Corona in his impeachment trial in the Senate.
Henares said on Friday that she will take to the witness stand again as required by the impeachment court.
Her appearance as a witness in Corona's trial triggered intense debates between the prosecution and the defense, as well as outbursts from Senator Miriam Defensor Santiago, who was later forced to leave the hearing because of high blood pressure.
"Amused! I think naman I cannot lie. I was told that the camera would sometime pan to my face. So, amused because it's funny sometimes," Henares said.
She also appeared cool under pressure while undergoing cross examination by former Supreme Court Associate Justice Serafin Cuevas.
Cuevas asked her, "Sinabihan ka ba na durugin si Corona? (Were you told to destroy Corona?)"
Henares found Cuevas funny.
"Hindi ko pa naman naririnig yung mga boss ko na nagsasalita ng ganung lenguwahe. Kasi parang lenguwaheng kanto yun noh. Eh yung mga boss ko napakapinong mga tao," she said.
Henares testified about the tax records of the Chief Justice, his wife Cristina, and their daughters Carla and Charina.
BIR records of Chief Justice Renato Corona's income do not match his Statement of Assets, Liabilities and Net worth (SALN), prosecutors said.
Corona's wife also bought their P11-million La Vista property in 2003 without any clear source of income, according to Henares.
She said the Coronas' daughter, Carla, is facing a tax probe for buying an P18-million property from her parents in 2010 despite having only P8,000 in taxable income in 2009.
Documents also showed that Charina bought a property on McKinley Hill Subdivision in Taguig.
However, she does not have records of income tax returns except for the one-time payment of the Taguig property, Henares said.
Henares returned to work on Friday at the BIR.
She declined to discuss BIR investigations into the Corona family's tax records, saying these are confidential matters.
She said she will not back out from serving as a witness in the impeachment trial.
"Whether willing o hindi, wala akong pwedeng gawin. Mamaya ma-contempt ako. Okay lang naman tumira sa Senado, 'wag lang weekends," Henares said. - report from Jorge Cariño, ABS-CBN News
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Sa puntong ito ang defense
Sa puntong ito ang defense counsel ay nagpapalusot na lang dahil alam nila na wala silang maibibigay na tamang paliwanag tungkol sa wide descrepancies ng SALN at ITR ni Corona. Maliwanag pa sa liwanag ng buwan kung papaano sinadyang imisdeclare ang ITR at SALN ni Corona. Nakapagtataka kung paano siya nagkaroon ng maraming asset in a space of 10 years based on the salary and allowances of a SC justice.
Ang defense team ay hindi libre dahil ang kanilang law firms na pinanggalingan ay mayroong kaso nabibimbin sa SC na nangangailangan ng pabor sa sindikato ni Corona. Kaya hindi nagpa-file ng leave of absence si Corona habang under trial for impeachment. This shows Corona is a morally corrupt person. He has no right to stay employed as a Chief Justice while undergoing trial for impeachment. There should be a ruling in our Constitution regarding his actuation.
Her comments are not savy at
Her comments are not savy at all. She does not appear to be trust worthy.
Henaras can laugh all she
Henaras can laugh all she wants, but it won't erase the fact that she was fired by the ING Barings bank in 2000. Acting on the Replevin case filed by the bank, Makati RTC judge Oscar Pimentel even ordered the siezure of the 1996 BMW 318 company car issued to her. She and her boss Pnoy sure likes luxury cars. Like Lacierda, she was plucked from obscurity, no wonder she will do anything to please her yellow master.
Pagkakataon nga naman
Si Iggy Arroyo ay taga La Vista rin, hmmmmm, pagkakataon lang ba ito?