MANILA — A retired branch manager of the Land Bank of the Philippines (Landbank) on Wednesday told the Senate impeachment court that the Office of the Vice President’s (OVP) four PHP125-million cash withdrawals were unusual and unlike transactions made by other government agencies.

Retired Landbank Shaw Boulevard branch manager Violeta Constantino made the statement in response to questions from Senator-Judge Erwin Tulfo after the defense admitted that four authentic Landbank checks worth a total of PHP500 million had been encashed by former OVP Special Disbursing Officer Gina Acosta.

Asked by Tulfo whether she had encountered another government agency making a similar cash withdrawal, Constantino replied: “Wala po. Unusual po ito (No Sir, this is unusual).”

Constantino had earlier testified that she personally supervised the encashment of the four PHP125-million checks at the Landbank Shaw Boulevard branch between December 2022 and July 2023.

She said the branch maintained accounts for several government agencies but had not seen comparable cash withdrawals because most government transactions had shifted to electronic payments.

“So far po, nag-convert na po lahat kasi sila sa online system, laging sa ATM payroll. So hindi na po ganyang kalalaking withdrawal po nila (all have converted to the online system. It is always through the automated teller machine payroll. Their withdrawals are not that large anymore),” Constantino said.

Tulfo also asked whether high-ranking government offices were exempt from the bank’s standard operating procedures for large cash withdrawals.

“Wala na po ang exemption (There are no more exemptions),” Constantino answered.

She explained that the OVP had informed the branch in advance about the planned withdrawals, allowing the bank to request the required cash from its cash center because each PHP125-million withdrawal exceeded the branch’s normal cash and vault limits.

“Kasi po may advice naman po siya. So dumaan naman po ito sa process nila (Because there was an advice. So, it went through their process),” she said.

Constantino also testified that although bank personnel found the transactions unusual, they did not ask the OVP how the cash would be used.

“Sa personal opinion namin sa bank, parang siyempre po saan kaya gagamitin po ‘yung cash na ito? Pero hindi naman po namin tinatanong na. Kasi may advice naman po siya (In our personal opinion at the bank, of course, ‘Where would this cash be spent?’ But we did not ask because there was an advice),” she said.

When asked if she knew at the time that the withdrawals involved confidential or intelligence funds, Constantino replied, “Hindi po (No sir).”

She likewise clarified that the OVP’s Modified Disbursement System account had only been transferred to the Shaw Boulevard branch after the office relocated in 2022.

During the proceedings, the defense stipulated that the four Landbank checks were authentic, funded by the Philippine Treasury, drawn against the OVP account, payable to Acosta, and encashed by her in her capacity as the OVP’s special disbursing officer.