Manila: The impeachment trial of Vice President Sara Z. Duterte will progress into the audit phase this week as witnesses from the Commission on Audit (COA) present their findings concerning the PHP612.5 million in confidential funds received by the Office of the Vice President (OVP) and the Department of Education (DepEd) during Duterte's tenure as secretary.
According to Philippines News Agency, the prosecution will transition from tracking the movement of the funds to evaluating whether they were spent and liquidated in compliance with the rules, as stated by Tingog Party-list Representative Jude Acidre in a news release on Sunday. Acidre expressed that the forthcoming witnesses from COA will elucidate the auditing process of the confidential funds and the review of their liquidation. They will also examine whether the supporting documentation adhered to the rules governing confidential and intelligence funds.
The first to testify will be former COA state auditor Roderick Wamil and current Intelligence and Confidential Funds Audit Office Supervising Auditor Celine May Del Campo. Additionally, Marivic Pareja, Director of the House of Representatives Legislative Information Resources Management Department, is expected to testify later in the week.
These testimonies follow the prosecution's initial presentation on Article I last week, where former Land Bank of the Philippines managers Violeta Constantino and Nenita Camposano were called to testify. Acidre noted that their testimonies confirmed that the PHP612.5 million in confidential funds was sourced from public money released by the National Treasury and was fully withdrawn in cash via seven checks.
Constantino detailed that four Treasury checks, each worth PHP125 million and totaling PHP500 million, were cashed for the OVP in December 2022 and in February, April, and July 2023 by Special Disbursing Officer Gina Acosta, with Assistant Secretary Lemuel Ortonio accompanying her. Camposano added that three Treasury checks of PHP37.5 million each, totaling PHP112.5 million, were cashed for DepEd by Special Disbursing Officer Edward Fajarda during the same period when Duterte served as DepEd secretary.
Acidre further highlighted the unusual nature of these transactions during last week's questioning by senator-judges. Article I of the impeachment complaint accuses Duterte of misusing the PHP612.5 million in confidential funds allocated to the OVP and DepEd between 2022 and 2023. Acidre stated that the prosecution plans to present evidence showing how the funds were accounted for after their bank withdrawal.
The former COA auditors are also expected to discuss the Commission's directive for the return of PHP73.287 million in confidential funds issued to the OVP in 2022. It is noteworthy that a 2024 investigation by the House Committee on Good Government and Public Accountability uncovered alleged irregularities in the liquidation of the confidential funds, including acknowledgment receipts with allegedly fictitious names like 'Mary Grace Piattos,' 'Milky Secuya,' and 'Kokoy Villamin.'
Philippine Statistics Authority certifications and National Bureau of Investigation findings, presented during the inquiry, revealed that many supposed recipients lacked matching birth records, and several signatures on acknowledgment receipts appeared to be written by the same hand, among other questioned liquidation documents.
