Sara Duterte's confi fund recipients have surnames of senators —Ortega
The recipients of the P500 million worth of confidential funds of the office of Vice President Sara Duterte in 2023 included people bearing surnames similar to the incumbent senators, House Deputy Majority Leader and La Union Representative Paolo Ortega V said Thursday.
Ortega said based on the acknowledgement receipts submitted by the OVP to the Commission on Audit on the disbursement of confidential funds, the recipients include Beth Revilla, Janice Marie Revilla, Diane Maple Lapid, John Lapid Jr., Clarisse Hontiveros, Kristine Applegate Estrada, and Denise Tanya Escudero.
Incumbent senators include Bong Revilla, Jr., Lito Lapid, Risa Hontiveros, Jinggoy Estrada, and Senate President Francis Escudero.
'These irregularities are too glaring to ignore—these names from the supposed Budol Gang call for a deeper look. Hanggang Senado po, hindi na pinalampas," Ortega said in a statement.
Aside from the people with surnames similar to senators, the OVP submissions of confidential fund recipients also included Cannor Adrian Contis which is similar to a cake shop and restaurant.
"Kapag ba may confidential funds ang opisina mo, may sweet tooth ka din? When these suspicious names turned out to be fixtures, this is not just a simple malfeasance. It is well-coordinated and well-planned siphoning of public funds," Ortega said.
(If your office is a recipient of confidential funds, does that mean you should have a sweet tooth?)
'Hindi nakakatawa ang paulit-ulit na paggamit ng mga pekeng pangalan na parang hinugot mula sa sine at showbiz (The repeated use of fictitious names from the movies and showbiz is not funny). We are talking about public funds here. If they cannot show evidence that these people exist, then these are strong evidence against them in the impeachment trial," Ortega added.
Ortega said the recipients of confidential funds bearing surnames of senators are among the over 1,300 names who did not have birth, marriage, or death records from the Philippine Statistics Authority (PSA).
Other earlier names disclosed by Ortega were from 'Team Grocery" such as Beverly Claire Pampano, Mico Harina, Ralph Josh Bacon, Patty Ting and Sala Casim, as well as Mary Grace Piattos and Xiaome Ocho which are similar to popular junk food, bake shop, and mobile phone brand.
The Joint Circular 2015-01 governing the use of confidential and intelligence funds require agencies to maintain sealed and verifiable documentation linking aliases to real identities.
The Senate is scheduled to convene as an impeachment court on June 2.
Duterte was impeached by the House of Representatives on February 5, with over 200 congressmen endorsing the complaint against her.
She was accused of betrayal of public trust, culpable violation of the Constitution, graft and corruption, and other high crimes mainly over alleged misuse of around P612.5 million worth of confidential funds and threatening to kill President Ferdinand Marcos, Jr., First Lady Liza Marcos, and the President's cousin and Speaker, Leyte First District Rep. Martin Romualdez.
The Vice President, for her part, said she is looking forward to her impeachment trial in the upcoming 20th Congress because she 'wants a bloodbath."
Under the Constitution, House impeachment prosecutors would need 16 votes or two-thirds of the 24-strong Senate to secure conviction.
GMA News Online has reached out to the camp of the Vice President for comment and will publish it as soon as it is available. —AOL, GMA Integrated News
Try Our AI Features
Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:
Comments
No comments yet...
Related Articles
GMA Network
2 hours ago
- GMA Network
House prosecutor: Swear in senators as impeach trial judges pronto
To ensure that the Senate convenes into an impeachment court before the 19th Congress ends, an impeachment prosecutor recommended Friday that senators take their oath as impeachment court judges immediately after the Articles of Impeachment are read in a Senate session on June 11. "I hope they can convene by taking their oath as senator-judges also on June 11. It's up to them how their agenda will include that. But that's the most practical way of convening the impeachment court while they are still in session," said impeachment prosecutor Lorenz Defensor, who serves as House deputy majority leader and representative of the 3rd district of Iloilo. Senate President Francis "Chiz" Escudero wrote the House of Representatives to say that the reading of Articles of Impeachment on June 2 has been postponed to June 11 so the Senate could prioritize approving important pieces of legislation. Based on the legislative calendar of the 19th Congress, the Senate and the House of Representatives resume session from June 2 to 13 before they adjourn sine die on June 14. Congress will resume session on July 28 when the 20th Congress opens. "Further delay means that the Senate cannot constitute itself as the impeachment court if we will not hold sessions the following day on June 12, kasi holiday (because it's a holiday)," Defensor said. He added, "Meaning wala pang senador ang makaka-take oath, magtatapos na ang 19th Congress kasi mag-a-adjourn na kami sine die. So meaning, wala pa rin impeachment court by June 13, June 14. Kasi walang nag-take oath on a session day." (This means no senator will be able to take an oath as a judge. The 19th Congress would end because we will adjourn sine die. So meaning, there would still be no impeachment court by June 13, June 14, because nobody took an oath on a session day.) Abide by Senate's decision However, Defensor said he and the other impeachment prosecutors of the House of Representatives cannot do anything but abide by the Senate's decision. "I am disheartened because the delay has been long enough, but a lawyer in any court, the defense as well as the prosecution, will have to abide by whatever the court will decide on and whatever order or whatever process the Senate court will issue," Defensor said. "So tatanggapin namin 'yun. Parang abogado lang sa korte (So we will accept that, just like a lawyer in court)," he added. Lost time Defensor and another House leader, House Deputy Majority Leader and La Union 1st district Representative Paolo Ortega, expressed concern over the delay. Ortega said, "Well, may delay, may cause of delay. Doon lang tayo may konting apprehension kasi sayang 'yung oras. A few months ago, a few weeks ago, may na-set na tayo na oras tapos biglang ganito na naman." (Well, there's a delay, a cause of delay. That was our apprehension because time will be lost. A few months ago, a few weeks ago, a timeline was set then here comes a new schedule.) For his part, Defensor said, "I accept the reason for delay of the Senate President. Anyway, what is one week? And they said that they will prioritize the priority bills under the LEDAC (Legislative Executive Development Advisory Council). But as for any further delay, it's very bad for democracy. It's not a good reflection of how the Senate wants to proceed with this impeachment trial." "So sana ma-reconsider ng Senado ang kanilang desisyon na ipatagal pa (Hopefully the Senate would reconsider their decision to push back the date). While we respect the decision of the Senate as the impeachment court eventually, we hope that they will uphold their duty to hold trial for this impeachment," he added. GMA Integrated News has sought comment from Escudero regarding the matter, but he has yet to respond as of posting time. — VDV, GMA Integrated News
GMA Network
4 hours ago
- GMA Network
Bam Aquino takes oath in hometown Concepcion, Tarlac
Senator-elect Paolo Benigno 'Bam' Aquino IV took his oath of office on Friday in his hometown of Concepcion, Tarlac. Aquino was sworn in by Concepcion Mayor Noel Villanueva during a ceremony at the Concepcion Municipal Government Center. The ceremony was attended by local officials from Tarlac, including Representatives Jaime Cojuangco (First District) and Bong Rivera (Third District). Aquino placed second in the 2025 senatorial elections with 20,971,899 votes and topped the Senate race in Tarlac, securing 63% of the votes cast in his home province in the May 12 polls. Aquino ran on a campaign vowing to expand funding for the Free College Law, one of the measures he authored during his first Senate tenure from 2013 to 2019. Aquino also said there is a need to pass a bill ensuring job offers for college graduates, especially those who earned their college degrees due to the Free College Law. —LDF, GMA Integrated News
GMA Network
4 hours ago
- GMA Network
De Lima: Resked of impeach raps reading meant to 'kill' Sara trial
Incoming ML Partylist representative Leila de Lima raised alarm Friday over the Senate's decision to move the presentation of the Articles of Impeachment against Vice President Sara Duterte from June 2 to June 11, calling it a potential strategy to derail the process. "Isa 'yan sa mga senyales na sa tingin ko, may nangyayari. Sa tingin ko, mayroon nang ganyang usapan—na kino-consider na nila 'yan to kill the impeachment trial," said De Lima, who is set to join the House impeachment prosecution panel. (I think that's one of the signs that something's happening. I think with these discussions, they are considering to kill the impeachment trial.) De Lima aired her concern at the Agenda at the Club Filipino news forum, warning that by the time June 11 arrives, the Senate might simply vote not to proceed with the trial. "Ang nai-imagine ko na, na come June 11, sasabihin na naman nila, 'Okay, hindi na puwede. Let's put it to a vote.' Hindi tayo makakasiguro na majority of them will say, 'Okay, let's proceed,'" she said. "I can only foresee na on that last day, sasabihin na lang nila na hindi na puwede." (I would imagine that come June 11, they'll say, 'Okay, we can't do it anymore. Let's put it to a vote.' We can't be assured that majority of them will say, 'Okay, let's proceed.') Senate President Francis "Chiz" Escudero earlier informed the House of Representatives that the presentation of the Articles of Impeachment has been reset to June 11, just three days before Congress adjourns sine die on June 14. In a letter to House Speaker Ferdinand Martin Romualdez, Escudero said both chambers needed to prioritize legislation under the administration's agenda, and address over 200 presidential appointments still pending confirmation by the Commission on Appointments. "With only six session days before the sine die adjournment, it is imperative for the Senate and the House of Representatives to prioritize the passage of these measures," Escudero said. GMA Integrated News has requested comment from Escudero regarding De Lima's statements, but he has yet to respond as of posting time. Meanwhile, De Lima also suggested that President Ferdinand "Bongbong" Marcos Jr.'s public remarks distancing himself from the issue may have influenced the Senate's handling of the timeline. "Sa mga public statements na 'yon, may epekto rin 'yan sa dilly-dally [ng impeachment] (Those statements have an effect on the dillying-dallying of the impeachment process)," she said. Malacañang said Friday the impeachment of Vice President Sara Duterte is beyond the reach of Marcos. The President has previously said that he was not in favor of the impeachment trial as it would take away Congress' focus from the passage of critical pieces of legislation. De Lima questioned the repeated delays, noting that even in the House, the initial transmission of the articles was held off due to budget deliberations. "I'm also questioning that—kasi ilang beses na ba namo-move (because it's been moved repeatedly)?" she said. "Hindi agad pinadala noon kasi ang excuse nila is budget hearing. Prioritized ang budget hearing bago kinonsider ang mga complaint." (Back then, it wasn't transmitted right away because their excuse was that there were budget hearings. However, budget hearings are prioritized before complaints are considered.) De Lima argued that the Senate should have acted on the impeachment trial as soon as the House voted to impeach Vice President Sara Duterte, and transmitted the complaint last February. "That term 'shall forthwith' is there in the Constitution—nilabag na agad 'yon eh at that point (it was violated right away at that point)," she said, referring to the constitutional requirement that the Senate must proceed with the trial immediately after receiving the Articles of Impeachment. Also on Friday, Senate Minority Leader Koko Pimentel said he would ask Escudero about his decision to move the presentation of articles, noting that the later had issued an "impeachment calendar" months ago. — VDV, GMA Integrated News
