OVP Duterte Accused of Unauthorized Spending

ACT Teachers Party-list Representative France Castro has asserted that the Office of Vice President Sara Duterte expended its ₱125 million confidential funds within a mere 19 days in 2022.

Castro, also a Deputy Minority Leader in the House, has alleged that this spending occurred without proper Congressional authorization. She pointed out that the General Appropriations Act for that year did not allocate any funding for confidential expenditures by the OVP.

Castro highlighted that this allocation was not authorized, revealing that the funds originated from a contingent fund within the Office of the President, totaling ₱125 million. She conveyed this information during an interview with CNN Philippines’ The Source on August 28.

In a separate declaration, Castro noted that the Department of Budget and Management released SARO-BMB-C-22-0012004 for the OVP on December 13, 2022, amounting to ₱221,424,000. This release covered both Financial Assistance/Subsidy and Confidential Funds based on an approval from the Office of the President dated November 28, 2022.

The ₱125 million confidential fund and over ₱96.4 million for medical assistance were part of this amount.

Explaining the situation further, Castro stated that the OVP’s Statement of Appropriations, Allotments, Obligations, Disbursements, and Balances (SAAODB) as of December 31, 2022, disclosed that by the end of that quarter, Php 155,000,000 had been obligated and disbursed, while Php 66,424,000 remained as unobligated allotment.

The SAAODB for the quarter ending June 30, 2023, also confirmed an unspent amount of ₱66,424,000 under the Contingent Fund category, specifically Financial Assistance/Subsidy-Others.

Castro emphasized that these figures suggested that the ₱125 million in Confidential Funds, along with Php 30,000,000 from the Financial Assistance budget, was fully expended by December 31, 2022, totaling Php 155,000,000.

This implies that the entire ₱125 million was utilized in a mere 19 days, from December 13 to 31, 2022, equating to nearly ₱7 million per day, Castro highlighted.

The lawmaker also raised concerns about potential legal ramifications, asserting that Vice President Sara Duterte could face charges such as technical malversation and illegal use of public funds, as well as violations of the Anti-Graft and Corrupt Practices Act.

Castro urged the OVP to provide a comprehensive public breakdown of how the ₱125 million was expended, and she anticipated that Vice President Duterte would address this matter during the OVP budget hearing.

Castro indicated that the Commission on Audit had committed to investigating the situation and furnishing a report to the House appropriations committee.

While she mentioned the possibility of exploring impeachment proceedings, she clarified that it was premature to discuss such actions against Vice President Duterte.
Castro remained steadfast in her assertion that the OVP’s use of confidential funds in the past year was “illegal.”

In response, Vice President Duterte pushed back against Castro’s allegations, promising that the allegations would be addressed once the investigation concludes and during the budget hearing.

The OVP has yet to respond regarding Castro’s recent statement.

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