Denzel Gavin F.

Balatbat 12 – HUMSS B

The Office of the Vice President (OVP) has been under fire for its request and use of
₱221.42 million from the Office of the President (OP) in 2022, which included ₱125 million for
confidential funds. The confidential funds were intended for the newly created satellite offices of
the OVP, but their legality and utilization have been questioned by the Commission on Audit
(COA) and some lawmakers. In this essay, I will argue that the OVP’s allocation and spending of
the confidential funds violated the principles of transparency and accountability, and that they
should be returned or audited by COA.

First, the OVP’s request and receipt of the confidential funds violated the principle of
transparency, as they were not part of the OVP’s original 2022 budget and they were not
disclosed to the public. Moreover, there was no public announcement or report on how and why
the OVP requested and received such a huge amount from the OP. The OVP’s request and
receipt of the confidential funds were done in secret, without any public scrutiny or oversight.

Second, the OVP’s use of the confidential funds violated the principle of accountability,
as they were spent in a short period of time and without any proper documentation or
justification. According to COA Circular No. 2015-007, which provides guidelines on
confidential and intelligence funds, “The utilization of Confidential/Intelligence Funds shall be
supported by appropriate vouchers/documents as prescribed under existing accounting and
auditing rules and regulations.” However, according to COA’s audit report on the OVP for 2022,
“The Confidential Fund amounting to ₱125 million was disbursed within 11 days from
December 20 to 31, 2022.” Furthermore, COA found that “The disbursement vouchers were not
supported with complete documentary requirements such as … detailed breakdown of expenses
incurred per activity/operation; … certification from concerned officials/personnel that expenses
incurred were necessary and reasonable; … and accomplishment report on each
activity/operation undertaken.” The OVP’s use of the confidential funds was done in haste and
without any proper accountability.

Therefore, I conclude that the OVP’s allocation and spending of the confidential funds
violated the principles of transparency and accountability, and that they should be returned or
audited by COA. The confidential funds are public funds that belong to the Filipino people, and
they should not be used for personal or political purposes by any government official or agency.
The OVP should explain to the public how and why it requested and received such a huge
amount from the OP, and how it spent it in such a short period of time. The OVP should also
submit to COA all the necessary documents and vouchers to support its utilization of the
confidential funds. If there are any irregularities or anomalies found by COA, then the OVP
should be held liable and accountable for them. The OVP’s confidential funds are a violation of
transparency and accountability, and they should be thrashed by COA.