MANILA, Philippines — Six officials of the Office of the Vice President (OVP) and a former education official have been placed under an immigration lookout bulletin (ILBO).
Justice Secretary Jesus Crispin Remulla signed on Nov. 6 the ILBO against OVP chief of staff Zuleika Lopez, assistant chief of staff and bids and awards committee chairman Lemuel Ortonio, administrative and financial services director Rosalynne Sanchez, special disbursing officers Gina Acosta and Edward Fajarda, chief accountant Julieta Villadelrey and former Department of Education (DepEd) assistant secretary Sunshine Charry Fajarda.
The seven have ignored subpoenas from the House committee on good government and public accountability investigating the alleged misuse of funds of the OVP and DepEd under Vice President Sara Duterte.
An ILBO instructs immigration officers to alert authorities should the subjects attempt to leave the country. But it does not prevent them from leaving.
Only a hold-departure order and a warrant of arrest issued by the courts can prevent an accused from leaving the country.
“The ILBO is not a restriction to their right to travel, but merely a monitoring mechanism by which we can see if they left or enter the country,” Department of Justice (DOJ) spokesman Mico Clavano said.
The ILBO has been forwarded to the Bureau of Immigration (BI) for implementation.
However, BI spokesperson Dana Sandova said the bureau had not yet received a copy of the ILBO as of past 5 p.m. yesterday.
‘Personal trip’
The OVP yesterday said chief of staff Lopez left the country for a “personal trip” that was approved by the Vice President. Lopez is expected to return on Nov. 16.
“The OVP chief of staff’s travel was personal and unrelated to her employment with the OVP,” the OVP said in a statement. “Usec. Lopez appropriately submitted documents required of traveling government officials, which were approved by the Vice President.”
“Speculations about the purpose of this travel are unfounded and unnecessary. We request to respect the privacy of the family on this difficult time,” the OVP added.
Lopez left the country on the eve of the scheduled resumption of the House panel which is looking into the Vice President’s alleged misuse of public funds, particularly confidential funds, worth a total of P612.5 million in both the OVP and the Department of Education (DepEd).
Immigration records indicate Lopez left the country at 7 p.m. on Monday via a Philippine Airlines flight to Los Angeles, California.
Five of the six others subpoenaed OVP officials are still in the country based on their latest travel records. Only Acosta’s status remains unclear due to multiple individuals with the same name.
Why leave?
Staff members of the Vice President do not have to leave the country if they indeed have nothing to hide regarding the records of how the hundreds of millions in confidential funds were spent, Manila 3rd district Rep. Joel Chua said yesterday.
“Their continued defiance and refusal to attend our hearings indicate evasion from accountability. If they really have clear intentions, they should explain to the people where they spent all these funds,” he said.
The Chua committee’s investigation centers on P500 million in confidential funds allocated to the OVP and an additional P112.5 million allocated to the DepEd during Duterte’s tenure as secretary, from mid-2022 until July 19 this year.
Bogus OVP reports
Liquidation reports submitted by the OVP for the P23.8-million confidential funds in 2022 proved to be “belatedly prepared,” after Commission on Audit (COA) records show the acknowledgment receipts were either “bogus or spurious.”
Rep. Rodge Gutierrez of 1Rider party-list made this revelation during Tuesday’s hearing, where he disclosed 158 questionable acknowledgment receipts, some dated 2023 but submitted to justify 2022 expenses.
“So what you’re saying is they (OVP) exceeded in their liquidation reports? Am I correct in my interpretation?” Chua asked Gutierrez.
“Your guess is as good as ours. It could also be that these ARs (acknowledgment receipts) were belatedly prepared,” Gutierrez observed, noting liquidation papers bore a December 2023 date when “no confidential fund” was disbursed during this period.
COA lawyer Gloria Camora admitted before the committee that there may have been “inadvertence and typographical mistakes” committed by OVP personnel. She also confirmed there was “no intelligence funds” released in the third quarter of 2023, negating the need for ARs.
“One of the findings under the COA notice of suspension is that some ARs were dated December 2023, and some were even undated. They (OVP) said they inadvertently contained clerical or typographical errors indicating 2023 instead of 2022,” she conceded.
There were also ARs bearing not just “similar handwritings, same color of ballpens in a common pattern,” but also having the same set of signatories like a certain “AAS” and “JOV” who received a total of P280,000 and P920,000 for “purchase of information,” respectively, allegedly in December 2022.
There were also 776 ARs, 302 of which bore “unreadable names” with five “repeated names.”
“More likely, this was the same mistake committed by perhaps a few persons. Are these ARs spurious? Are they bogus? Are they false?” Gutierrez asked. “We want to make sure that this doesn’t happen again. Accountability should be had on this.”
Imee won’t comment on Marcos Jr.-Sara rift
Meanwhile, Sen. Imee Marcos said she would rather move on instead of commenting on the rift between her brother President Marcos and her friend, the Vice President.
“That’s old news. Let’s just continue with our work,” Sen. Marcos said in Filipino on the sidelines of her visit in San Jose del Monte, Bulacan. She denied having ill feelings for Duterte, after the latter questioned her brother’s ability to govern and even imagined beheading the President out of anger at him.
Senator Marcos added that her friendship with Duterte remains intact. “What is important for me is to enter into any alliance. I want to talk to everyone. I don’t want to pick fights,” said Marcos, who is seeking reelection next year.
“They say I have too strong a personality. That’s true, I admit. But I don’t want to get into fights. I just want to work,” she added.
Marcos said she would campaign independently for next year’s midterm elections. While she is part of her brother’s administration alliance senatorial slate, Marcos said she would campaign alone under the Nacionalista Party.
“It is better that I run independent and have a solo flight,” Marcos said.
OVP budget cut
House lawmakers yesterday thanked their colleagues in the Senate for their decision to keep the P733-million budget allocation for the OVP for 2025, which congressmen slashed by P1.3 billion.
“We’re grateful that the Senate has shown a commitment to fiscal responsibility and transparency. This move underscores our shared commitment to eliminate redundant roles and ensure government spending prioritizes efficient public service,” Rep. Zaldy Co said.
The chairman of the House appropriations committee lauded the Senate for aligning with its position that a significant portion of the OVP’s budget is allocated to overlapping functions with other government agencies. Also slashed were the OVP’s rental expenses for 10 satellite offices and two extensions.
“The Senate’s support of the OVP budget cuts is a significant step toward ensuring that each peso serves the public effectively,” he said, adding that streamlined government spending paves the way for a more transparent fiscal administration. – Evelyn Macairan, Elizabeth Marcelo, Delon Porcalla, Marc Jayson Cayabyab
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