Malacañang has defended the decision of President Ferdinand "Bongbong" Marcos Jr. to release the P221.424-million in confidential funds to the office of Vice President Sara Duterte last year, saying the President saw the need to release the amount.
Marcos, according to the Office of the Executive Secretary, has the authority to approve the release of the fund which was deemed necessary for the new initiatives pushed by Duterte in 2022.
In a statement, Executive Secretary Lucas Bersamin said the confidential fund was released in compliance with Special Provision No. 1 under the 2022 Contingent Fund, authorizing the Office of the President (OP) to approve releases to cover funding requirements of new or urgent activities that need to be implemented.
Bersamin stressed that "the President is authorized to approve releases to cover funding requirements of new or urgent activities of national government agencies, among others, that need to be implemented during the year.”
The Executive Secretary also emphasized that Marcos saw the need to release the fund in support of Vice President Duterte’s initiatives, upon the recommendation of the Department of Budget and Management (DBM).
“Vice President Sara, who was newly elected then, needed funds for her new programs for the remaining period of 2022. The President supported this initiative and released the funds, with the favorable recommendation of DBM,” Bersamin added.
Duterte requested the OP to release P221.424 million for maintenance, operating and other expenses (MOOE) items such as financial assistance/subsidy amounting to P96.424 million and confidential funds intended for newly created satellite offices in the amount of P125 million.
The fund is chargeable against the FY 2022 Contingent Fund, the Executive Secretary said.