House of Representatives (Ellson Quismorio/ MANILA BULLETIN)

The House Committee on Appropriations has issued on Tuesday, Aug. 13, a subpoena duces tecum requiring the Commission on Audit (COA) to submit to the panel the audit report on the confidential funds of the Office of the Vice President (OVP) and the Department of Education (DepEd) for both 2022 and 2023.

Marikina City 2nd district Rep. Stella Quimbo, who was presiding over the panel, cited the committee’s oversight power in approving the motion and after hearing no objections.

“Earlier, there were multiple motions relating to confidential funds. There was a motion by Cong. France Castro to issue a subpoena duces tecum requiring COA to submit the audit report of the OVP and the use of the confidential funds for 2022 and 2023, which was reiterated by [Gabriela Party-list] Hon. [Arlene] Brosas,” said Quimbo.

“[Kabataan Party-list] Hon. [Raoul] Manuel supported the same and at the same time, also introduced the motion to issue a subpoena duces tecum requiring an audit report, this time for the DepEd, for 2023,” she continued.

Earlier in the hearing, ACT Teachers Party-list Rep. France Castro stressed that she has been requesting copies of the report on confidential funds since 2022, stating that it was “long overdue”.

COA Chairperson Gamaliel Cordoba, however, explained that the nature of the funding bars the agency from divulging the report to the committee.

“Because of the nature of the funds, which is confidential, we cannot divulge it. But if mayron pong (there is a) subpoena, we can study the subpoena and we can submit,” said Cordoba.

Based on a COA Circular dated September 2013, the commission can be compelled to submit documents, records, reports, decisions, and other information upon the issuance of a subpoena duces tecum.

Cordoba further noted that without a subpoena, only the accomplishment records of the OVP and the DepEd, in relation to the spending of the confidential funds, can be accessed.

“When they used the confidential funds, after each quarter they submit their accomplishment to the Office of the Speaker, Office of the Senate President, and Office of the President,” he added.

Brosas, during her interpellation, noted that COA’s report must clarify how the OVP spent the controversial P125-million confidential funds in just 11 days.

“Gusto po namin malaman talaga kung ano ang pinaggastusan nito and I’m sure very, very curious ang lahat dito,” said Brosas.

(We really want to know what it was spent on and I'm sure everyone here is very, very curious.)

“Kayo po ang makakapagsabi sa amin no’n, kayo po ang may resibo, kayo ang may dokumento,” she emphasized.

(You're the one who can tell us, you're the one with the receipt, you're the one with the documents.)

Brosas even threatened that if lawmakers would not be able to see how the P125-million confidential funds were spent, she will move to defer the agency’s budget in the ongoing  deliberations on the 2025 National Expenditure Program (NEP).

During the budget hearings last year, COA revealed that the OVP was able to spend P125 million during an 11-day period in December 2022.