House Committee on Good Government and Public Accountability chair Rep. Joel Chua has affirmed that the House Justice Committee has the authority to obtain the tax records of Vice President Sara Zimmerman Duterte. The lawmaker made the statement to clarify the panel's subpoena to the Bureau of Internal Revenue (BIR) for the Vice President's income tax returns (ITRs).
Constitutional Authority Cited
According to Chua, the committee possesses the power to issue subpoenas, which extends even to the BIR. The lawyer-legislator believes that since the committee did not open the green box containing VP Sara's tax records, the law permits the release of such records. He stated that the Constitution grants Congress the ability to create its own rules, including authorizing the issuance of subpoenas.
Subpoena Power of Congress
Through the subpoena power of Congress (both House and Senate), the committee can obtain the income tax return of VP Sara even if a statute prohibits it. It was recalled that committee members agreed not to open the green box to avoid giving the Vice President's camp a reason to question the hearing and to prevent a new application for a temporary restraining order (TRO) from the Supreme Court.
