Malaca±ang: There is nothing inherently wrong with confidential funds as long as they are used for legitimate purposes, within an agency's mandate, and properly accounted for. 'Walang mali sa confidential funds, kung ito ay nagagamit sa tunay na dahilan or purpose at kung ito ay base sa mandato ng ahensya (There is nothing wrong with confidential funds if they are used for a legitimate purpose and if their use is within the mandate of the agency),' Palace Press Officer Claire Castro said in a press briefing.
According to Philippines News Agency, Castro made the statement as the Senate, sitting as an impeachment court, continued hearing testimony and evidence from the prosecution and defense, including Commission on Audit (COA) findings on Vice President Sara Duterte's use and liquidation of confidential funds. The funds under scrutiny include PHP500 million from the Office of the Vice President (OVP) and PHP112.5 million from the Department of Education (DepEd) during Duterte's tenure as Education secretary.
Castro stressed that the executive branch would not interfere in the impeachment proceedings but questioned the OVP's reported use of PHP125 million in confidential funds within 11 days. She said the spending raised questions about whether the funds were deliberately exhausted to avoid returning the unspent balance to the National Treasury. "Bilang parte ng aming mandato, na ipaliwanag ang katotohanan, ito po ang aming nakita. Unang-una, bakit nga ba naubos ang PHP125 million in 11 days (As part of our mandate to explain the truth, this is what we have observed. First, why was the PHP125 million spent in just 11 days)?" Castro said.
Castro highlighted that funds not fully utilized within the year are returned to the National Treasury, suggesting that the quick expenditure might have been to avoid returning the funds. She also questioned the use of confidential funds for Duterte's 'own protection,' noting that the Vice President is provided security by the police and military.
Castro cited COA Joint Circular No. 2015-01, which sets guidelines for the proper liquidation and handling of confidential funds, including the maintenance of supporting documents that may be presented to auditors when necessary. She emphasized that the confidential nature of the funds does not exempt agencies from accounting for their use.
In addition, Castro criticized what she described as 'misleading' questions during the cross-examination of witnesses in the impeachment proceedings, saying questions that force witnesses to answer only 'yes' or 'no' could result in inaccurate responses. Her remarks followed a heated exchange between lawyers Lorna Kapunan and Kristine Ferrer over the use of allegedly misleading questions during the cross-examination of witnesses in Duterte's impeachment trial.
