Escudero, Trillanes declare P4M in net worth

Senators Antonio Trillanes IV (left) and Sen. Francis Escudero: P4 million networth. FILE PHOTO

MANILA, Philippines—Two reelectionist senators just beat the deadline for filing their statements of assets, liabilities and net worth (SALN), with each declaring a net worth of a little more than P4 million.

Senators Francis Escudero and Antonio Trillanes IV beat by several days the April 30 deadline set by law for the filing of SALNs required of government officials.

A check of Escudero’s SALN dated April 25, 2013, showed his net worth had dropped to a little over P4 million in 2012 from P9.8 million in 2011 after he and his former wife transferred their two condominium units to their twin children.

Escudero listed among his remaining assets a 1995 Range Rover Classic (P1 million), a 1969 BMW 2002 (P333,640.80) and a 1995 Toyota Land Cruiser (P650,000). All values were the purchase prices of the vehicles that were acquired in 2011.

The senator also listed P900,000 in cash, jewelry and other personal property of P920,000, and a partnership interest of P213,441.29 in a law firm he joined in 1994.

Escudero’s staff said the two condominiums in Quezon City were listed in his 2011 SALN at their total acquisition cost of P6.6 million.

In the 2012 SALN, the same units were listed in a separate sheet for “exclusive properties of declarant’s spouse and unmarried children below 18 years living in declarant’s household” at their current fair market value of P1.631 million and P1.234 million.

The senator’s staff said the “new form” SALN in 2012 only required a declarant to indicate the current fair market value “as found in the tax declaration of real properties” since the units were not newly acquired.

The staff said Escudero and his ex-wife, Christine Flores, put the two condominium units “under the names of their minor children after their marriage was annulled.”

The separate sheet also showed the two children were given trust funds worth P520,000 each.

Trillanes filed his 2012 SALN on April 16 and reported a net worth of P4.432 million.

The senator said he had P5.9 million in assets including three residential lots—in Cavite (bought for P452,000), Antipolo City (P2 million) and General Santos City (no purchase price because it was inherited).