Vice President Sara Duterte has denied allegations of misusing the confidential funds of the Office of the Vice President (OVP) in 2022, countering claims that such actions could lead to impeachment. The accusations were made by House Deputy Minority Leader France Castro, who argued that Duterte’s alleged failure to comply with the rules for the use of P73 million in confidential funds constituted grounds for impeachment.
“There was no misuse of any funds,” Duterte stated in an interview with GMA Integrated News’ Jonathan Andal. She described the accusations as part of an “unending political attack by the Makabayan-Romualdez-Marcos alliance,” which she suggested was intended to distract from the more pressing issue of rising food prices affecting the poor and hungry in the country.
Duterte further criticized her opponents, saying, “Dapat magtrabaho muna bago pulitika [you should work first before politicking].”
The controversy arose after the Commission on Audit (COA) issued a Notice of Disallowance for P73 million out of the P125 million in confidential funds that the OVP disbursed within just 11 days. According to COA Assistant Commissioner Alexander Juliano, the notice indicated that the expenditures were deemed “either irregular, unnecessary, excessive, extravagant, or unconscionable.”
In response to the COA’s findings, Castro accused Duterte of breaking the law and betraying public trust. She claimed that Duterte had exploited the confidential nature of the funds to hide her alleged misuse of public money. “Her misuse of confidential funds is an impeachable offense,” Castro argued, calling for accountability in the handling of public finances, especially given the lack of funding for essential public services.
Duterte, on her part, dismissed the allegations of impeachment as documented political maneuvers against her by certain members of the House of Representatives.