Sara Duterte reiterates: Fate of OVP 2025 budget is up to House

VP Sara Duterte composite image from Inquirer stock and House of Representatives of the Philippines photos

MANILA, Philippines — Vice President Sara Duterte has reiterated that her office is leaving it up to the House of Representatives to decide on its proposed budget for 2025.

In a letter dated September 11 and released to reporters on Monday, Duterte told Lanao del Sur 1st District Rep. Zia Alonto Adiong that the Office of the Vice President (OVP) acknowledges the receipt of his letter, asking for a meeting to discuss the OVP’s proposed budget.

Adiong, vice chairperson of the House committee on appropriations, is set to defend OVP’s proposed P733-million budget.

However, Duterte repeated what she said during the budget deliberation and in a previous letter to Speaker Ferdinand Martin Romualdez and appropriations chairperson Ako Bicol party-list Rep. Elizaldy Co, that she is leaving the fate of the OVP’s budget up to the House.

“The [OVP] acknowledges the receipt of your letter of even date requesting a meeting to discuss the proposed budget of this office for the fiscal year 2025. As communicated to the Speaker of the House of Representatives and the Chair of the Committee on Appropriations, the OVP has duly submitted all the required documents to the Committee pertaining to its budget request for the upcoming year,” Duterte said.

“Furthermore, a comprehensive review of our proposals was presented during my presentation on August 27, 2024. In consideration of the foregoing, the OVP leaves the deliberation of our budget proposal in the plenary entirely to the pleasure of the House of Representatives,” she added.

The OVP was originally allocated a P2.037-billion budget under the National Expenditures Program (NEP), but House lawmakers decided to cut this down after Duterte refused to directly answer their questions during the August 27 hearing, and skipped the subsequent hearing on September 10.

READ: OVP’s 2025 budget talks deferred anew; panel terminates hearings

During the August 27 hearing, Duterte answered most of the questions by saying that she forgoes the opportunity to defend the OVP budget and leaves it up to the House to decide on the budget submitted.

READ: Duterte refuses to answer OVP budget questions, sparks House tension

The House is set to discuss the OVP budget at the plenary on Monday. It is unclear, however, if Duterte or anybody from the OVP would attend the deliberation.

Duterte and the OVP are currently under fire after budget hearings at the House revealed issues on the OVP’s confidential funds in 2022 and 2023, and alleged anomalies in the delivery of projects.

House Majority Leader Manuel Jose Dalipe said Duterte may be held liable for graft if she cannot explain how funds were spent, particularly the items with adverse findings from the Commission on Audit (COA)

The COA issued a notice of disallowance on P73.2 million of the OVP’s P125-million CF for 2022, an item that several lawmakers said should not be available in the first place, as the original budget crafted under former vice president Leni Robredo did not have such.

The observations have led the House committee on good government and public accountability to check on the issues surrounding the OVP’s budget utilization.

READ: OVP hit for using only 0.4% of its Magnegosyo Ta Day funds

READ: Sara Duterte’s confidential fund spending raises new, more doubts