Vice President Sara Duterte (left), Marikina City 2nd district Rep. Stella Quimbo (Facebook)

Marikina City 2nd district Rep. Stella Quimbo said that her revelation of the Office of the Vice President's (OVP) questionable spending of P125-million confidential funds was "the most difficult moment" of her tenure as a congresswoman. 

Quimbo, senior chairperson of the House Committee on Appropriations, made this emotional admission on Tuesday afternoon, Aug. 27 during the budget hearing of the OVP, which Vice President Sara Duterte attended. 

"I just want to state for the record that that was in no way a planned action on my part. That was the most difficult moment in my five years in Congress. Tinanong ako ng isang tanong (I was asked a question), I just had to say the truth," said Quimbo, who presided over the hearing. 

"So yan lang po. I just want to state that on record that on my part, simula noong moment na yan ay naging napakahirap ng buhay ko (from that moment on, my life has become very difficult)," she added 

During the five-hour budget hearing, Vinc  President Duterte claimed that the plenary debate between Quimbo and Makabayan solon ACT Teachers Party-list Rep. France Castro during the budget process last year was the start of the "script" on the attacks against the OVP on the topic of confidential funds use. 

The OVP under Vice President Duterte has been heavily criticized for its reported spending of P125 million worth of the secret funds in a span of just 11 days in December 2022. 

"Kasi Madam Chair, noong nagsagutan na kayo, ikaw, Representative Quimbo, saka Representative Castro about the 11 days, 19 days, ilang days na ‘yong ng utilization, nakita ko na that was the start of an attack against the [OVP] and i-hinge ‘yong attack on the confidential fund use," the Vice President said. 

(Because Madam Chair, when you had the debate, you, Representative Quimbo, and Representative Castro about the 11 days, 19 days, on the duration of the utilization, I saw that was the start of an attack against the OVP and ithe attack was hinged on confidential fund use.) 

"So nakita na namin ‘yong timelines and nakita na namin ‘yong kumbaga, script sa narrative ng attack on the [OVP] with regards to confidential funds," she added. 

(So we saw the timelines and we saw the script, so to speak, on the narrative of the attack on the OVP, with regards to confidential funds.) 

READ THIS: 

https://mb.com.ph/2024/8/27/notice-of-disallowance-vs-ovp-raised-in-house-budget-hearing-p73-m-confidential-funds-flagged 

Quimbo--who graciously handled the Vice President's bossy and abrasive demeanor during the hearing--said her revelation about the P125-million confidential funds last year was based on documents. 

"Nakabase sa liquidation report at kitang-kita niyo naman doon po sa nakakita na po ng notice of disallowance na ginamit po siya from Dec. 21-31, at pagbilangin po natin ang mga araw na yan mula 21-31 ay indeed 11 days," she explained. 

"No rational human being would ever want to plan her life that way. So there's absolutely no way that can be planned on my part, just for the record," underscored Quimbo.