Taguig City 2nd district Rep. Amparo Maria Zamora (left), Senate President Pro Tempore Jinggoy Estrada (Facebook)

Taguig City 2nd district Rep. Pammy Zamora has a big problem with Senate President Pro Tempore Jinggoy Estrada insistence that the Office of the Vice President's (OVP) P2.037-billion budget for 2025 be kept intact. 

Zamora, a member of the "Young Guns" bloc, cautioned Estrada as his statements may be misconstrued as tolerance of what the Commission on Audit (COA) itself had flagged. 

“Senator Estrada’s fierce defense of the VP Sara Duterte’s is a cause of concern," the lady solon said in a statement Tuesday, Sept. 17. 

"These are not confidential funds; they are part of the regular budget that should be carefully reviewed. Public money is always scrutinized in their use,” Zamora said of the P2.037 billion originally proposed for Vice President Sara Duterte's office under the 2025 national budget. 

Last week, the House Committee on Appropriations recommend a whopping 63 percent ( P1.293-billion) budget slash to the OVP. This would leave Vice President Duterte's office with just P733 million next year. 

The House plenary will decide whether or not to adopt the proposed budget cut on Sept. 23, or on the penultimate day of the budget debates. 

The appropriations panel's recommendation was spurred by Vice President Duterte's perceived failure to explain her budget spending--particularly confidential funds---during the committee level hearings on the 2025 national budget. 

The COA has flagged Vice President Duterte's usage of P73.28 million out of her office's P125 million confidential funds, which were spent in just 11 days in December 2022. 

ALSO READ: 

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

Estrada had suggested the restoration of the OVP's 2025 outlay once the Senate gets their turn with the national budget. 

"Eh paano naman magpafunction ang OVP kung tatapyasan mo ng pondo. Ako naman on my part as a senator sana i-restore na lang siguro yung budget ng OVP para naman makapagfunction," he said. 

(How can the OVP function if you're going to reduce its funds? On my part as a senator, I hope we can restore the OVP's budget so it can properly function.) 

She called for a thorough review of the OVP's budget, and emphasized that the Vice President was given the proper forum to air her side.  

“We need to closely examine not only confidential funds but also regular budget items. They should always be used for real programs and services. We owe it to the Filipino people to ensure that their taxes are used responsibly,” Zamora said.