VICE President Sara Duterte yesterday denied misusing the Office of the Vice President’s (OVP) P73 million confidential funds in 2022, accusing President Marcos Jr. and his cousin Speaker Martin Romualdez of conspiring with the militant Makabayan bloc to attack her.
“There was no misuse of any funds. There is, however, (an) unending political attack by the Makabayan-Romualdez-Marcos alliance to mask the real problem of the country right now,” Duterte told GMA News in an interview.
The Vice President said his political rivals should focus on working for the people first “before politicking.”
“This is the sad plight of the poor and the hungry because of the unabated rise of food prices. Ordinary citizens’ principles are not for sale, ‘ayuda’ (cash aid) will not solve the growing dissent. It is a classic ‘wag the dog’ piece,” she said.
Rep. France Castro (PL, ACT), a member of the militant Makabayan bloc, said last Friday that the Notice of Disallowance (ND) issued by the Commission on Audit on the P73 million 2022 confidential funds could be used to impeach Duterte.
COA earlier ordered the OVP to return P73 million out of the P125 million in confidential funds that it spent in just 11 days in December 2022.
The audit agency issued the ND following the OVP’s “non-submission of documents evidencing the success of information-gathering and/or surveillance activities to support acknowledgment receipts for payments of rewards in cash, various goods and medicines” that totaled to P69.7 million.
The audit agency said the amount is comprised of P10 million for reward payments, P34.8 million for payments of rewards through various goods, and P24.9 million for the payment of rewards through medicines.
The rest of the P73.2 million, worth P3.5 million, covered payments for tables, chairs, desktop computers and printers “without specifying that they were intended for the confidential operations/activities undertaken by the OVP,” which COA said is non-compliant with the requirements.
Castro has said the Vice President clearly “broke the law” because the COA’s findings constituted “a clear betrayal of public trust.”
“COA’s findings reveal a glaring misuse of public funds. It is becoming apparent that Duterte was banking on the supposed veil of secrecy around Confidential Funds to hide her unlawful use of people’s money,” she said.
Batangas Rep. Gerville Luistro last Sunday said the OVP tried but failed to prevent the COA from submitting to Congress an audit report on her office’s use of confidential funds in 2022,
Luistro said that in a letter last August 21 or just six days before the House Committee on Appropriations was scheduled to hear the OVP’s budget proposal for 2025, Duterte’s chief of staff Zuleika Lopez advised COA against complying with the committee’s subpoena duces tecum for the ND and audits of the OVP and Department of Education’s (DepEd) confidential funds for 2022 and 2023.
Tension rose during the budget hearing last August 27 after Duterte stonewalled questions on the COA’s ND for the OVP’s use of confidential funds, saying it was up to the House to decide on her office’s budget proposal.
A combative Duterte was chastised to respect the panel after she repeatedly questioned the rulings of presiding chair Marikina Rep. Stella Quimbo and the House rules and even tried to raise motions despite not being a member of the chamber.
In a privileged speech yesterday, Manila Rep. Rolando Valeriano lambasted the Vice President for “displaying bad manners and disrespecting our Constitution and democratic republic.”
“Sukudulang kabastusan ang kanyang ipinamalas (She displayed utmost disrespect),” Valeriano said. “Dito sa Kamara, hindi natin tinatapatan ng kabatusan ang kabastusan. Maling asal kasi iyon (Here at the House, we don’t respond to discourtesy with discourtesy because that’s bad manners).”
Valeriano said the Vice President mistakenly thought that she was above the law and could not be questioned by anyone, including Congress. He said Duterte even thought she had the power to replace the panel’s presiding officer, Quimbo.
He said the Duterte’s refusal to answer the questions of lawmakers on her use of confidential funds and other issues about her office’s budget proposal, is “cowardice.”
“Iyan ang nagdudumilat na katotohanang nasaksihan natin sa budget hearing. Takot sa mga lehitimong mga tanong ng taumbayan. (That’s the stinging truth that we saw during the budget hearing. She’s afraid of legitimate questions from the people),” Valeriano said.
Valeriano reminded his constituents and all Filipino voters that someone like Duterte, who is believed to be eyeing the presidency in 2028, does not deserve their trust, especially since she refuses to say how she spends public funds.
The lawmaker also insinuated that the Vice President is a lackey of the Chinese government and its citizens who are behind running Philippine Offshore Gaming Operators (POGOs), which proliferated during the administration of her father, former president Rodrigo Duterte.
“Sino ba talaga ang boss at pinaglilingkuran niya? Baka naman ang boss niya ay humaharang sa bangka ng mga Pilipinong mangingisda o ang mga promotor ng POGO. Ganyan ba ang asal ng ating Bise Presidente at nag-aambisyong maging Presidente? (Who is her boss, really? Maybe the ones blocking the boats of Filipino fishermen or those behind POGOs. Is that the way our Vice President, who is ambitioning to become president, acts?) We deserve better,” he said.
