Former Commission on Audit (COA) Intelligence and Confidential Fund Audit Office (ICFAO) State Auditor Atty. Roderick Wamil told the impeachment court on Wednesday that the guidelines governing confidential and intelligence funds do not explicitly allow or prohibit the use of aliases for intelligence agents or informants.

Testifying during the impeachment trial of Vice President Sara Duterte, Wamil said the COA-Department of Budget and Management (DBM) Joint Circular No. 2015-01 is "silent" on whether fictitious names or aliases may be used in documents supporting confidential fund disbursements.

His testimony came after Senator-judge Erwin Tulfo asked whether the circular required the disclosure of the actual identities of intelligence agents or informants who allegedly received confidential funds from the Office of the Vice President (OVP), citing names such as "Mary Grace Piattos," "Chippy McDonald," and "Mickey Mouse."

Wamil replied that the circular contains no provision on the matter.

"It is neither allowed nor prohibited," he said when Tulfo asked whether the absence of a specific rule meant the practice was permissible.

Tulfo then questioned why COA auditors did not seek to determine the true identities of the listed recipients during the audit of the OVP's confidential funds.

Wamil explained that the audit conducted by the ICFAO was a compliance audit, with auditors determining only whether the documents complied with the requirements set out in the joint circular.

"Our audit is a compliance audit. Whatever is provided in the circular serves as the basis of our audit," he said.

Later, Senator-judge Bam Aquino also questioned Wamil on the issue, asking whether previous COA guidelines had ever expressly allowed the use of code names or aliases.

Wamil said that, based on his recollection, even earlier circulars in effect during his time at the ICFAO did not contain any provision addressing aliases.

Aquino then asked whether COA expected the names appearing in supporting documents to belong to actual persons.

Wamil said the audit process is document-based, and auditors have no way of independently determining whether a listed name is an alias.

However, when Aquino asked if the expectation is that documents submitted to COA identify real individuals, Wamil replied in the affirmative.

The exchange formed part of the impeachment court's examination of the liquidation and auditing procedures for the OVP's confidential funds, an issue central to one of the articles of impeachment against Duterte.