DAVAO CITY – Pwersa ng Pilipinong Pandagat party-list Rep. Harold Duterte has urged fellow lawmakers to investigate the activities and outcomes funded by the government’s confidential and intelligence allocations.

“I am calling on my fellow legislators, especially those sitting in the Committee on Strategic Intelligence, to not only scrutinize the budget for confidential and intelligence funds, but to examine the actual activities and results of these expenditures,” Duterte said in a statement.

The Davao lawmaker stressed that “intelligence and confidence” should go hand in hand, pointing out the need for transparency and accountability in how such funds are used in the name of national security.

According to Duterte, President Ferdinand Marcos Jr. had access to P27 billion in confidential and intelligence funds since assuming office. For next year, the Executive department is seeking an additional P10 billion.

“Yet, despite these massive allocations supposedly aimed at safeguarding national security, the President’s latest ratings tell a different story — 33 percent approval and 34 percent trust,” Duterte said, citing recent survey results.

Duterte contrasted the President’s rating with that of Vice President Sara Duterte, who continues to enjoy 55 percent approval and strong public confidence despite being criticized for alleged misuse of confidential funds.

“If this is a battle of intelligence and confidence, the numbers do not lie,” the lawmaker said, emphasizing that the people know who they can trust and cannot.

“The actual intelligence spending should translate to public trust. In the end, real intelligence is not about secrecy, but about the trust people still have in you,” he added.

Duterte questioned the tangible results of the billions spent on intelligence activities. He said the Filipino people deserve to know what exactly P27 billion in intelligence funds achieved.