Metro Manila, Philippines — A House panel is mulling a plunder complaint against Vice President Sara Duterte over her supposed questionable confidential funds when she was Education chief, a lawmaker said on Sunday, Oct. 27.
The House committee on good government and public accountability has been holding an inquiry on Duterte’s confidential funds in the budgets of the Office of the Vice President and Department of Education (DepEd).
Duterte, DepEd secretary from July 2022 to July 2024, has allegedly failed to account for P112.5 million out of its P150-million confidential funds last year.
“Pera ito ng taong bayan, at kailangan nating tiyakin na ito ay nagamit ng tama,” Senior Deputy Speaker and Pampanga 3rd District Rep. Aurelio Gonzales said in a statement.
[Translation: This is the public’s money, and we need to ensure that this has been utilized correctly.]
“Kung ang Bise Presidente, bilang pinuno ng DepEd noong panahong iyon, ay hindi makapagbigay ng malinaw at sapat na paliwanag kung paano ginamit ang perang ito, tungkulin namin na ituloy ang kinakailangang mga legal na hakbang, kabilang ang kasong plunder, upang maprotektahan ang interes ng publiko,” he said.
[Translation: If the vice president, as head of DepEd during that time, cannot provide a clear and sufficient explanation how the money was used, it is our duty to pursue necessary legal steps, including plunder, to protect the public’s interests.]
The plunder threshold is P50 million.
In 2023, the P112. 5 million was withdrawn through three separate checks issued to DepEd Special Disbursing Officer Edward Fajarda, who has yet to attend the panel’s investigation.
Gonzales flagged discrepancies in the DepEd documents as the disbursement vouchers were labeled maintenance and other operating expenses instead of confidential funds.
Some former DepEd officials have also claimed that they received extra cash in envelopes, on top of their salary, without knowing its purpose.
READ: Ex-DepEd official bares extra money; Duterte bucks claim
NewsWatch Plus reached out to Duterte’s office for a comment but has yet to receive a response.
