Senator Hontiveros questions why OVP had to use confidential funds to purchase medicines

Senator-judge Risa Hontiveros on Wednesday scrutinized the Office of the Vice President's (OVP) use of confidential funds to buy medicines, pressing whether the items were distributed as public aid rather than actual informant rewards.

During the impeachment trial of Vice President Sara Duterte, Hontiveros raised the issue with prosecution witness Roderick Wamil, a former state auditor at the Commission on Audit’s Intelligence and Confidential Funds Audit Office (COA-ICFAO) who audited the OVP’s confidential transactions.

Hontiveros opened by asking if dispensing medicines in exchange for intelligence was standard procedure.

“It is not normal, Your Honor,” Wamil answered, noting it was the first time he had encountered the practice in his audit work. However, he clarified that their review focused primarily on documentary compliance rather than the underlying nature of the transactions.

“You did not investigate it. So, as an auditor, would you classify this as a reward or as aid?” Hontiveros pressed.

“It can be interpreted either way,” Wamil replied. “Since our audit is document-based, it may be regarded as the payment of rewards, but it may also be viewed as the provision of medicines.”

Hontiveros questioned the logic behind the expenditures, dryly asking if the alleged informants suffered from chronic health issues.

“Are the informants sick most of the time?” she asked. “Did you ask what those medicines were for? Were they for asthma? Hypertension? Diabetes?”

While Wamil stated he had no knowledge of the informants' medical backgrounds, Hontiveros highlighted an acknowledgment receipt showing that an individual named "Mary Grace Piattos" allegedly received ₱70,000 worth of medicines as a reward.

“What was her illness?” Hontiveros asked.

Wamil reiterated that the COA relied on the paper trail submitted by the OVP. Hontiveros countered that state auditors retain the authority to seek clarification—a point Wamil conceded, agreeing that the 2015 Joint Circular governing secret funds empowers auditors to make inquiries when necessary.

The exchange centers on Article I of the impeachment complaint, which focuses on a COA Notice of Disallowance covering ₱73 million of the OVP's ₱125 million confidential fund allocation in 2022.

The disallowance, issued in 2024 and affirmed by the COA in 2026, cited the OVP's failure to submit proof of successful information-gathering or surveillance operations to justify roughly ₱69 million in rewards distributed via cash, goods, and medical supplies.

Article I accuses Vice President Duterte of impeachable offenses involving the alleged systematic misappropriation and irregular liquidation of ₱500 million in confidential funds allocated to the OVP, along with ₱112.5 million released to the Department of Education during her tenure as Education Secretary.