Vice President Sara Duterte (Ellson Quismorio/ MANILA BULLETIN)

Ranking congressmen are of the impression that Vice President Sara Duterte is doing all she can to skirt and divert from the issue of alleged confidential and intelligence funds (CIFs) misuse that has been hounding her for over a year now.

Case in point according to Senior Deputy Speaker Pampanga 3rd district Rep. Aurelio “Dong” Gonzales Jr., Majority Leader Zamboanga City 1st district Rep. Manuel Jose “Mannix” Dalipe, and Deputy Majority Leader Tingog Party-list Rep. Jude Acidre was the Vice President's press conference Friday, Oct.18 wherein she once again made outlandish and controversial remarks. 

As such, the House members called on Duterte to stop her squid tactics and instead confront the controversy head-on. 

Duterte held the press conference a day after the House Committee on Good Government and Public Accountability learned some eyebrow-raising allegations on the utilization of CIFs under the Office of the Vice President (OVP) as well as the Department of Education (DepEd), particularly when the lady official was still its secretary. 

“Public funds are at stake here. Stop diverting the issue and address the controversy directly,” Gonzales said. 

“Huwag puro iwas (Enough diversionary tactics), the people deserve clear answers. Pati military ginamit mo (You even used the military), yet they were denied what was due to them. This needs to be explained,” he said, referring to issues raised during Thursday’s panel hearing. 

For his part, Dalipe says the Vice President is “clearly desperate to deflect attention". 

“Instead of addressing these serious allegations, she’s attacking others. The education system declined under her leadership, and public funds were mishandled. She must take responsibility,” pointed out the Mindanaoan. 

Acidre's disappointment with Duterte was very evident in his words. "It is deeply unfortunate that Vice President Sara Duterte continues to engage in politicking at a time when the nation demands unity and decisive action to address the challenges we face," he said. 

"Instead of responding to the legitimate concerns raised against her through the proper channels, she has chosen to dismiss these issues as mere political attacks. Such an approach only exacerbates the divisions in our country, undermining the stability we desperately need for national development and progress," added the solon from Visayas. 

"The Filipino people deserve better. They expect leaders who will build bridges, not walls; leaders who will focus on long-lasting, durable solutions rather than sowing disunity for short-term political gain," Acidre further said. 

It was learned during Thursday’s committee hearing that DepEd had falsely claimed to the Commission on Audit (COA) that it used P15 million of its CIFs in connection with eight youth leadership summits (YLS). 

Apparently, it was the Armed Forces of the Philippines (AFP) and local government units (LGUs) that shouldered most of the expenses for the YLS in 2023, despite DepEd’s claim that its CIFs were used. 

The DepEd under Vice President Duterte had used AFP's certifications to justify P15 million in CIFs, allegedly for paying informers. It is not yet clear what actually happened to the money. 

"This is not the time for deflections or personal attacks. Public funds were misused, and the education system suffered under her leadership. Vice President Duterte must explain where the money went,” Gonzales said. 

“The public deserves transparency about how public money, military resources, and the education sector were handled. It’s time for Duterte to stop dodging and face the music,” he added.