Metro Manila (CNN Philippines, August 25) — ACT Teachers Party-list Rep. France Castro said she will study the possibility of holding Vice President Sara Duterte to account, including filing an impeachment complaint, over the alleged unauthorized use of confidential funds for Duterte's office in 2022.
House deputy minority leader Castro said the Office of the Vice President (OVP) spent ₱125 million as confidential funds in 2022 even without Congressional authorization, as there was no appropriation for confidential expenses for the OVP under the 2022 General Appropriations Act (GAA).
Congress enacted the 2022 GAA in 2021, before Duterte was elected into office. She only started her term on June 30 last year.
Castro said former Vice President Leni Robredo "did not ask for and consequently was not given any confidential funds for her office for fiscal year 2022."
Asked if Castro would file an impeachment complaint against Duterte, the lawmaker said, "Tungkol sa impeachment, siyempre pag-aaralan natin 'yung mga possibility para mapanagot kung makikita natin talaga itong mga binanggit nating violation na ito, lalong lalo na ‘to misuse of public funds, technical malversation, at saka paglabag sa Constitution."
[Translation: About impeachment, we would study the possibilities on how to hold officials accountable if we prove there were violations, especially the misuse of public funds, technical malversation, and violating the Constitution.]
Castro said she is still waiting for the findings of the Commission on Audit’s (COA) investigation into the matter.
"Darating tayo diyan sa bagay na ‘yan sa impeachment pag buo na ‘yong ating data, information, facts, at documents," she added.
[Translation: We will come to the discussion of impeachment once our data, information, facts, and documents are complete.]
The lawmaker pointed out the presence of confidential funds in the OVP’s report for 2022 during the hearing of the House committee on appropriations in the proposed 2024 budget of COA on Thursday. She believed this was realigned.
COA chairperson Gamaliel Cordoba said they will look into it.
"The Vice President needs to explain how she could incur obligations amounting to ₱125 million in confidential expenses in the last six months of 2022 despite the fact that her office has no Congressional authorization to do so for that year," Castro said.
"Without such authorization, the strict rule prohibiting public disclosure of the use of confidential funds does not apply in this case," she said. "Therefore, we ask that the OVP provide a detailed public accounting of how the ₱125 million was spent."
"There may also be violations of the Supreme Court ruling on the Disbursement Acceleration Program (DAP) if savings were used to fund this ₱125 million confidential fund," she added.
For her part, Duterte said she welcomes the probe recommended by Castro to COA on the 2022 confidential funds of the OVP but stressed the lawmaker "doesn't deserve an explanation."
"All she did was wildly and masterfully arrange some allegations against me and the OVP, which will all be answered once the probe is done and during the budget hearing," the vice president added.
"Meanwhile, I hope she finds gratification and great joy over the thought of my impeachment from office. Enjoy," she said.