Insists scrutiny aims to hurt her in 2028 polls
Breaking House rules and traditions, Vice President Sara Duterte on Wednesday refused to take oath during the Committee on Good Government and Public Accountability’s hearing on the alleged misuse by her office of millions of pesos in funds for socio-economic programs.
Duterte also called for the termination of the House hearing on the budget of the Office of the Vice President, insisting there was no misuse of funds and citing the “lack of any proposed legislation or substantive matter for discussion.”
Minutes after the hearing started, the Vice President swiftly left the House of Representatives, but not before hitting what she described as a “coordinated political attack” against her, aimed at besmirching her reputation ahead of the 2028 presidential elections.
“This much is evident from the very words of the privilege speech that prompted this inquiry—a speech that simply meant to say: “Do not vote for Sara in 2028,’” she said.
“We have not done anything wrong…It is clear to me that this inquiry is not about misused funds, accountability or governance. Instead, it is solely aimed at discrediting my name and my office to prevent future political contests,” she added.
Committee chairman Manila Rep. Joel Chua earlier directed the committee secretary to ask all invited resource persons from the Office of the Vice President, Department of Budget and Management, and Commission on Audit to rise to be sworn to tell the truth to the panel on matters they would be asked about.
Duterte declined to take oath, something that even the late former Presidents Fidel Ramos and Benigno Aquino III did when they were invited as resource persons during past congressional inquiries.
Former President and Pampanga Rep. Gloria Macapagal Arroyo supported Duterte’s stand on the issue that only witnesses are required to take oath.
Arroyo cited a Supreme Court ruling and a Senate precedent on the difference between a witness and a resource person, which she said could not be treated lightly.
Chua on Wednesday announced the Committee on Good Government and Public Accountability would initiate a motu proprio investigation into the Department of Education’s questionable fund utilization during Duterte’s leadership.
The committee will probe potential “malfeasance, misfeasance, and nonfeasance” related to DepEd’s failure to deliver key projects, specifically the distribution of laptops and e-learning equipment, Chua said.
The investigation would focus on Batangas 2nd District Rep. Gerville Luistro’s concern over DepEd’s failure to utilize nearly P9 billion of its P11.36 billion budget for ICT equipment in 2023, resulting in a low utilization rate of 19.22 percent.
The committee will further examine the 2023 Commission on Audit report which exposed serious operational deficiencies in the DepEd’s Computerization Program.
The report noted that only 50.07 percent of the program’s budget had been utilized, with no substantial accomplishments for the year.
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