Vice President Sara Duterte (Noel Pabalate/ MANILA BULLETIN)

A day after admitting that they can't prove Vice President Sara Duterte misused P125 million in confidential funds last year, Gabriela Party-list Rep. Arlene Brosas said Saturday, Sept. 16 that the "burden of proof" should be placed on Duterte's shoulders. 

"We stand by our assertion that the utilization of P125-million confidential fund of the Office of the Vice President (OVP) in 2022 IS IN ITSELF questionable and unauthorized," the Makabayan solon said in a statement, the emphasis hers. 

According to Brosas, "The 2022 General Appropriations Act simply did not include any allocation for the OVP for confidential fund. There was no congressional authorization to do so." 

"As to how the P125 million confidential fund was actually spent, the burden of proof squarely falls on Vice President Sara Duterte and not on Makabayan bloc. Unfortunately, VP Duterte still has not provided a straight answer which will address the concerns of the Filipino people," she said. 

The militant Makabayan group was asked in a virtual press conference Friday on whether or not they have proof that the OVP misused P125 million, which according to the Department of Budget and Management (DBM) was "released" by the Office of the President (OP) to the OVP. 

"We have no proof right now, pero...may mga questions tayo. Kaya nga gusto nating magtanong eh. Kaya gusto nating mag-ungkat kung ano talaga yung nangyayari dito (But...we have questions. That's why we want to ask questions. That's why we want to dig about what really happened here)," Brosas answered. 

The militant solons' contention is that the OVP spent the nine-figure sum in just 19 days, from Dec. 13 to 31, 2022. The OVP had liquidated the money as confidential funds, thus they can't be audited by the Commission on Audit (COA). 

Brosas said that Joint Circular 2015-001 between DBM, COA, and the Department of the Interior and Local Government (DILG) clearly states where confidential and intelligence funds can be spent on. 

"Did VP Duterte pay rewards to informers? Did she pay for rentals of transport vehicles using confidential funds? These are the questions which the Vice President must be answering," the Gabriela solon asked. 

"If the Office of the Executive Secretary is claiming that confidential funds were used for the newly-created satellite offices of the OVP, it is evident that this is not covered under the joint circular. This bolsters our suspicions that confidential funds are prone to arbitrary use and potential misuse," she said. 

"Again, it is up the VP Duterte to issue a categorical clarification on this issue, instead of dishing out nonsense tirades," Brosas said.