VP Impeachment Trial: Prosecution to Probe Identities of Confidential Fund Payees

As Vice President Sara Duterte’s impeachment trial enters its 10th week on Monday, the prosecution panel is set to focus on verifying the identities of the recipients of the confidential funds (CFs) disbursed by the Office of the Vice President (OVP) and the Department of Education (DepEd) from late 2022 to the third quarter of 2023. Philippine Statistics Authority (PSA) Assistant National Statistician Marissa Grande is scheduled to testify on the 22nd trial date. She is expected to provide information regarding the identification of individuals listed as payees of the confidential funds. During previous hearings, the prosecution presented acknowledgment receipts submitted by the OVP and DepEd to the Commission on Audit. However, the payee names on these receipts have raised eyebrows, with several appearing to be suspicious, including names resembling food items, brands, or animals, such as "Piattos," "Miggy Mango," and "Pagong" (turtle). Some of these unusual payee names were first revealed in 2024 when the House Committee on Good Governance and Public Accountability launched an inquiry into Duterte’s secret funds. Subsequent PSA investigations found that 1,322 payees from the P500-million OVP CFs had no birth records. The PSA also reported that another 405 supposed recipients of DepEd’s P112.5-million CFs lacked birth records. This issue highlights long-standing concerns in the Philippines regarding the transparency and accountability of public fund utilization, particularly the management and disbursement of confidential funds by political figures, which are subject to public scrutiny.