Andy C. Lim and Patty Ting? Kapunan brings 15 boxes of evidence, plenty of punchlines

As the witness reviews the documents, 74-year-old veteran lawyer Lorna Kapunan asks presiding officer Chiz Escudero for a 3-minute suspension so she could sit down House private prosecutor Lorna Kapunan did not just bring 15 boxes containing thousands of documents related to Vice President Sara Duterte’s confidential funds on Monday, August 3. She also brought plenty of puns with her. During the 11th day of the impeachment trial, Kapunan presented acknowledgment receipts covering confidential funds spent by the Office of the Vice President (OVP) as she questioned Commission on Audit (COA) official Roderick Wamil, who previously audited the confidential funds of both the OVP and the Department of Education. While walking the witness through the voluminous records, the 74-year-old veteran lawyer found comic relief in some of the names appearing on the acknowledgment receipts. There was, of course, the now-infamous “Mary Grace Piattos,” listed as having received P70,000 for the “payment of reward (medicines)” — a name that resembles the popular restaurant chain Mary Grace and the Filipino snack brand Piattos. Another recipient of P110,000 in confidential funds was Renan Piattos. Then came “Patty Ting.” According to one acknowledgment receipt, Ting received P150,000 on December 23, 2022, for the “purchase of information.” “Parang hindi katiting ito,” (It seems like this is not a small amount) Kapunan quipped, playing on the surname “Ting” and the Filipino word katiting, which means “a tiny amount.” Next was “Andy C. Lim,” who was listed as receiving P50,000 for another “purchase of information.” “Kaya pala hindi ko mabasa, ang dilim,” Kapunan joked, turning “Andy C. Lim” into “ang dilim” (it’s dark). The gallery — made up of members of the public and staff of senator-judges — burst into laughter. She also pointed to another recipient, “Alejandro A. Pikit,” who received P90,000 for the purchase of information. “Kung may Andy Lim, kaya siguro dahil Pikit,” she said, punning on pikit (“closed eyes”). Before she could continue, Duterte’s counsel Michael Poa objected, arguing that Kapunan was “coloring” the contents of the documents through her side comments. Capunan insisted she was merely reading the names as they appeared on the exhibits. Even then, she couldn’t resist squeezing in one more punchline. “I’m just reading…It’s like Patty Ting. That’s the way it is spelled,” she said. “The next one — maybe you’ll object again — Alejandro A. Pikit. I was gonna say kaya siguro madilim dahil pikit ang mata (it’s dark maybe because eyes are closed).” Presiding officer Chiz Escudero stepped in, smiling as he addressed Kapunan. “Counsel for the panel of prosecutors, I think you know what the counsel for the respondent was talking about,” he said with a smirk. Kapunan simply acknowledged the point and moved on with her questioning. Other recipients of the confidential funds based on the acknowledgment receipts presented during the trial are Nova Santos, Mico Harina, Janice Marie Revilla, Feonna Biong, Sisfrunio Balsac, and Gabriel Bisaya. The acknowledgment receipts are among those flagged by the COA for allegedly failing to comply with the requirements under the joint circular governing the use of confidential funds. Wamil was also asked to examine 845 acknowledgment receipts in three boxes covering the confidential funds of the OVP and the Department of Education. As the witness reviewed the documents, Kapunan asked Escudero to suspend the proceedings for three minutes. When the presiding officer asked why, Kapunan replied that she wanted to give the witness more time to review the records and that she also wanted a chance to sit down. Without waiting for Escudero’s ruling, Kapunan immediately took her seat. Kapunan’s request drew laughter from the gallery, including several senator-judges. Trying to suppress a laugh himself, Escudero granted the brief suspension. Kapunan managed to slip in one last lighthearted moment. As assisting legal counsel lawyer Mark Peña handed more documents to Wamil, Kapunan asked if she could mention his name. “Can I mention his name? Because his mother daw is watching,” she said, drawing smiles in the impeachment court. Well, Kapunan definitely provided comic relief in this very serious trial. – Rappler.com