MANILA – The spokesperson for Vice President Sara Duterte’s impeachment defense team on Thursday clarified that they have no plan to present the person behind the alias “Mary Grace Piattos” in any future impeachment proceedings.

Lawyer Michael Poa issued a statement to reporters, calling reports of such a plan “inaccurate.”

“I have not made any such statement, nor have I confirmed or announced any such course of action,” Poa said. He urged the media “to avoid attributing statements or positions that were never made, in the interest of a fair public discussion.”

The clarification follows Poa’s February 3 interview with DZMM Radyo Patrol, in which he said the defense team would address the “Mary Grace Piattos” issue “in the appropriate forum” — referring to the impeachment proceedings.

Asked why the vice president would not simply answer who “Mary Grace Piattos” is, Poa said, “Ito na siguro yung appropriate forum [na sagutin], sa impeachment… Yung mga confidential activities may restrictions kasi ‘yan sa pagdidisclose. It might jeopardize ongoing operations, etc.”

(Perhaps this is the appropriate forum [to answer], in the impeachment… Confidential activities have restrictions when it comes to disclosure. It might jeopardize ongoing operations, etc.)

He added, “So, marahil noong mga panahon na ‘yun ay hindi tama dahil baka may majeopardize na operations. Pero itong impeachment, kung ito ang tamang venue, mailalahad na namin.”

(So, perhaps during those times it wasn’t right because operations might be jeopardized. But this impeachment, if this is the right venue, we can finally disclose it.)

When asked whether the impeachment would finally answer who is behind the alias, Poa said, “Syempre gusto natin sagutin lahat yan. Doon natin mapapatunayan na walang basehan ang mga batikos na katiwalian sa bise presidente.”

(Of course we want to answer all of that. That’s where we can prove that the criticisms of corruption against the vice president have no basis.)

Poa confirmed that Duterte’s lawyers have been preparing for a possible full trial since the first, now-dismissed impeachment case.

Who is Mary Grace Piattos?

“Mary Grace Piattos” — a name combining a popular restaurant chain and a local snack brand — is among the aliases of confidential fund recipients listed in the impeachment complaints against Duterte.

According to House probe findings on the Office of the Vice President’s use of confidential and intelligence funds in 2024, “Piattos” received the largest share of funds disbursed in December 2022. Lawmakers also flagged other recipients whose names appeared suspicious or repetitive, with similar handwriting, pen color, and signatories. Out of 776 acknowledgment receipts, 302 had unreadable names, and five names appeared multiple times.

These irregular and questionable aliases are part of the basis for the impeachment complaints filed against the vice president.