Confidential funds stay, but more questions arise

Amid questions raised from within and outside Congress, the proposed budgets for 2024 of the Office of the President and the Office of the Vice President – including their controversial secret funds totaling P5.21 billion – were summarily passed this week by the respective appropriations committees of the House and the Senate.

The secret funds consist of the following: P4.56 billion (P2.25 billion for confidential and P2.31 billion for intelligence expenses) for the OP, and P500 million for the OVP (plus P150 million for the education department).

“Parliamentary courtesy” to the two top Executive officials was invoked to justify the summary approval. In the House, however, such courtesy was matched with discourtesy towards a fellow legislator and officer of the House. As Deputy Minority Leader France Castro of the Makabayan bloc was manifesting her objection, the microphone was peremptorily shut off.

Calling out the committee’s action, Castro, of ACT-Teachers party-list, commented: “Courtesy? Respect? Is it not the government agencies, especially the Office of the President, which owe a higher courtesy and respect to our citizens? We owe them an explanation on how every centavo they entrust to us is being spent.”

The Makabayan bloc, comprising of three progressive party-list lawmakers (representing teachers, women and the youth), was among the first to raise objections to the confidential and intelligence funds (CIFs).

The bloc has vowed to continue questioning the CIFs for the OVP and OP in the plenary deliberations on the P5.768-trillion national government budget for fiscal year 2024. Gabriela Women’s Party Rep. Arlene Brosas, also assistant minority leader, stressed: “Upholding the principles of transparency, accountability and proper allocation of public funds is crucial in ensuring good governance and protecting the welfare of the Filipino people.”

Public opinion, pressure strongly expressed in the mainstream media and social media, against the CIFs apparently paid off. In its editorial on CIFs last Thursday, The Philippine STAR stated:

“The three branches of government are supposed to provide checks and balances to each other, minimizing mistakes as well as preventing the misuse, abuse and centralization of power.  It is disappointing that both chambers of Congress, invoking parliamentary courtesy, are abdicating this role in dealing with the executive’s proposals for confidential and intelligence funds or CIF.”

At the briefings in the Senate on the budgets of the OP and OVP, some interesting details on the use of the CIFs were incidentally disclosed to the public.

For instance, Vice President Duterte told the Senate panel that the confidential funds received by her office were used mainly for the “safe, secure and successful implementation of the projects, programs and activities” of the OVP. These were, she said:

Libreng Sakay program (the OVP “flagship”public assistance launched early in the second half of 2022); entrepreneurship program; peacebuilding in communities; Pagbabago Ngayon (distribution of free school supplies); Pagbabago: A Million Learners and Trees (tree-planting program); Pansarap program (feeding) and Disaster Operating Center (disaster relief operations).

Replying to Sen. Risa Hontiveros’ query if all these programs and projects and her other various functions were funded by CFs, Duterte replied: “In addition to that, I discharge the functions and duties of Secretary of  Education … I was trusted by the President to co-chair the NTF-ELCAC [Marcos Jr. chairs the body] and … I also took the role of president of the Southeast Asian Ministers of Education.” She added, “And all of these activities use confidential funds.”

However, Hontiveros clarified that Duterte’s roles in the Education Department and NTF-ELCAC have their own allocations of confidential funds, also pointing out that these may only be used for a “limited range of purposes,” specifically those related to surveillance operations.

Retorting, Duterte remarked: “We can live without the use of CFs.” But of course, she added, “our work will be much easier if we have the flexibility of CFs to monitor the safe, secure and successful” implementation of what they do.

What about the OP secret funds? Last Wednesday, during a press conference, Senate President Miguel Zubiri disclosed:

“When we reviewed the budget of the OP, most of it – I’m only allowed to say a few things – most of what we saw [are] actually in aid of the anti-drugs, anti-human trafficking anti-terrorism [campaigns] and dealing with informants.”

He didn’t say, though, where the rest of the OP’s P4.56-billion secret funds are spent on.

Zubiri, who chairs a five-member Senate oversight committee on confidential and intelligence funds recently reactivated, explained that the committee’s guidelines and rules do not allow him to disclose any other information as he is duty-bound to protect confidential information.

Back with reporters last Thursday, Zubiri further clarified that the oversight committee’s self-imposed rules prevent the publication of information on the secret funds. He emphasized that senators who violate the rules may be suspended or even expelled from the Senate.

The oversight panel has the authority to examine all CIFs, review all submissions and reports by various government agencies that receive such funds and to examine all rules, policies and issuances of executive agencies – including the Commission on Audit – pertaining to “entitlement, release, use and reporting” of CIFs.

But, the Senate President reiterated, any and all of the information and documents received by the oversight panel “may not be released or discussed before the media.”

Senate Minority Leader Aquilino Pimentel III, a member of the oversight panel, talked of an exception.  He and the four other panel members were not prevented from disclosing and discussing their “observations and conclusions” regarding the reports on the usage of the CIFs. “That is the purpose of the examination: to review and to come up with an opinion,” he averred.

The STAR editorial quoted earlier ended with a tone of skepticism: “Amid protests, the Senate leadership has said it may review the CIF of the OVP and DepEd. It remains to be seen whether this will lead to transparency and the judicious use of public funds.”