ADVERTISEMENT
Manila Bulletin devider Philippines devider National devider Teodoro: Fates of VP Duterte aides Lachica, Nolasco in Ombudsman's hands

Teodoro: Fates of VP Duterte aides Lachica, Nolasco in Ombudsman's hands

Published Aug 25, 2026 07:09 pm

At A Glance

  • The AFP completed its probe on Colonels Edward Lachica and Dennis Nolasco over the alleged misuse of P612.5 million confidential funds but turned the case over to the Ombudsman, which assumed jurisdiction.
  • Lachica and Nolasco were identified in the impeachment trial as handlers of OVP and DepEd confidential funds, though prosecutors argued they had no authority to manage the money.
  • Defense Secretary Gilbert Teodoro said the AFP will cooperate, noting the Ombudsman can impose sanctions or file charges, while Ombudsman Remulla confirmed his office is actively monitoring impeachment proceedings for possible violations.
DND Secretary Gilbert "Gibo" Teodoro (Facebook)
DND Secretary Gilbert "Gibo" Teodoro (Facebook)


The Armed Forces of the Philippines (AFP) is leaving it up to the Office of the Ombudsman to investigate and decide on the fates of the two officers who have been tagged in the alleged misuse of P612.5 million confidential funds linked to the Vice President Sara Duterte.
These two--whose names are commonly heard in the ongoing Senate impeachment trial of the Vice President--are Colonel Edward Lachica and Colonel Dennis Nolasco.
It was Kabataan Party-list Rep. Renee Co who asked Department on National Defense (DND) Secretary Gilbert "Gibo" Teodoro on Tuesday, Aug. 25 for an update on the status of the two colonels.
"Eleven months have passed and ngayon usap-usapin ulit kung ano yung pananagutan na po ni colonels Nolasco and ni Lachica in the misuse and abuse of confidential and intelligence funds...Were the officers sanctioned, criminally charged, or cleared?" Co said during the DND budget hearing before the House Committee on Appropriations.
Teodoro said the AFP Fact-Finding Committee had already completed its probe on the duo and submitted a resolution. However, the inquiry was stopped once the Ombudsman under Jesus Crispin "Boying" Remulla assumed jurisdiction over the case.
"Basically your honor, [in] November actually, since the chief-of-staff then approved the termination of the inquiry because of an ongoing investigation by the Office of the Ombudsman...pinasa na rin sa Ombudsman (it has been turned over to the Ombudsman) because it overrides the--snce the Ombudsman acquired jurisdiction," Teodoro said.
Alleged handlers of P612.5 million 
Former Office of the Vice President (OVP) special disbursing officer (SDO) Gina Acosta had testified before senator-judges that she released P500 million worth of confidential funds in four tranches to then-OVP security officer Lachica, upon Duterte’s orders.
Lachica's Department of Education (DepEd) counterpart, Nolasco, allegedly received the agency’s secret funds amount to P112.5 million from the its SDO, Edward Fajarda.
House prosecutors have argued that Lachica and Nolasco had no authority to handle the particular money.
Teodoro said the AFP will cooperate with the Ombudsman’s process since the allegations were on the personal accountability of the two officers and not on a matter involving the Armed Forces.
He added that it was better for the Ombudsman to continue the investigation since the AFP’s disciplinary authority was limited to discharge of the officers.
"It would be more prudent for the Ombudsman who can do that anyway and perhaps even file appropriate cases against the subject officers if warranted, given the circumstances," said the DND chief.
Remulla: We're monitoring impeachment trial
Remulla, like Teodoro, was also present at the House of Representatives Tuesday as he attended his agency’s own budget hearing.
During this particular hearing, Akbayan Party-list Rep. Chel Diokno asked Remulla if the Ombudsman was indeed keeping an eye on the witnesses' testimonies in the Senate impeachment trial.
"May I know if your office is presently monitoring the status of the testimonies and evidence being presented especially with respect with the confidential funds for possible violations that may be investigated after?" said Diokno, who incidentally is a prosecutor in the case against Duterte.
Remulla replied: "It is being monitored by our office, your honor. There is an active unit monitoring the goings on in the impeachment."
This was welcomed by Diokno. "Thank you so much for that. We do have some concerns about accountability that’s precisely we have the impeachment process."

Related Tags

AFP DND impeachment confidential funds Gibo Teodoro Sara Duterte Ombudsman Edward Lachica Dennis Nolasco
ADVERTISEMENT
.most-popular .layout-ratio{ padding-bottom: 79.13%; } @media (min-width: 768px) and (max-width: 1024px) { .widget-title { font-size: 15px !important; } }

{{ articles_filter_1561_widget.title }}

{{ item.title }}
.most-popular .layout-ratio{ padding-bottom: 79.13%; } @media (min-width: 768px) and (max-width: 1024px) { .widget-title { font-size: 15px !important; } }

{{ static_articles_1562_widget.title }}

{{ item.title }}
.most-popular .layout-ratio{ padding-bottom: 79.13%; } @media (min-width: 768px) and (max-width: 1024px) { .widget-title { font-size: 15px !important; } }

{{ articles_filter_1563_widget.title }}

{{ item.title }}

{{ articles_filter_1564_widget.title }}

{{ item.title }}
.mb-article-details { position: relative; } .mb-article-details .article-body-preview, .mb-article-details .article-body-summary{ font-size: 17px; line-height: 30px; font-family: "Libre Caslon Text", serif; color: #000; } .mb-article-details .article-body-preview iframe , .mb-article-details .article-body-summary iframe{ width: 100%; margin: auto; } .read-more-background { background: linear-gradient(180deg, color(display-p3 1.000 1.000 1.000 / 0) 13.75%, color(display-p3 1.000 1.000 1.000 / 0.8) 30.79%, color(display-p3 1.000 1.000 1.000) 72.5%); position: absolute; height: 200px; width: 100%; bottom: 0; display: flex; justify-content: center; align-items: center; padding: 0; } .read-more-background a{ color: #000; } .read-more-btn { padding: 17px 45px; font-family: Inter; font-weight: 700; font-size: 18px; line-height: 16px; text-align: center; vertical-align: middle; border: 1px solid black; background-color: white; } .hidden { display: none; }
function initializeAllSwipers() { // Get all hidden inputs with cms_article_id document.querySelectorAll('[id^="cms_article_id_"]').forEach(function (input) { const cmsArticleId = input.value; const articleSelector = '#article-' + cmsArticleId + ' .body_images'; const swiperElement = document.querySelector(articleSelector); if (swiperElement && !swiperElement.classList.contains('swiper-initialized')) { new Swiper(articleSelector, { loop: true, pagination: false, navigation: { nextEl: '#article-' + cmsArticleId + ' .swiper-button-next', prevEl: '#article-' + cmsArticleId + ' .swiper-button-prev', }, }); } }); } setTimeout(initializeAllSwipers, 3000); const intersectionObserver = new IntersectionObserver( (entries) => { entries.forEach((entry) => { if (entry.isIntersecting) { const newUrl = entry.target.getAttribute("data-url"); if (newUrl) { history.pushState(null, null, newUrl); let article = entry.target; // Extract metadata const author = article.querySelector('.author-section').textContent.replace('By', '').trim(); const section = article.querySelector('.section-info ').textContent.replace(' ', ' '); const title = article.querySelector('.article-title h1').textContent; // Parse URL for Chartbeat path format const parsedUrl = new URL(newUrl, window.location.origin); const cleanUrl = parsedUrl.host + parsedUrl.pathname; // Update Chartbeat configuration if (typeof window._sf_async_config !== 'undefined') { window._sf_async_config.path = cleanUrl; window._sf_async_config.sections = section; window._sf_async_config.authors = author; } // Track virtual page view with Chartbeat if (typeof pSUPERFLY !== 'undefined' && typeof pSUPERFLY.virtualPage === 'function') { try { pSUPERFLY.virtualPage({ path: cleanUrl, title: title, sections: section, authors: author }); } catch (error) { console.error('ping error', error); } } // Optional: Update document title if (title && title !== document.title) { document.title = title; } } } }); }, { threshold: 0.1 } ); function showArticleBody(button) { const article = button.closest("article"); const summary = article.querySelector(".article-body-summary"); const body = article.querySelector(".article-body-preview"); const readMoreSection = article.querySelector(".read-more-background"); // Hide summary and read-more section summary.style.display = "none"; readMoreSection.style.display = "none"; // Show the full article body body.classList.remove("hidden"); } document.addEventListener("DOMContentLoaded", () => { let loadCount = 0; // Track how many times articles are loaded const offset = [1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7, 8, 9, 10]; // Offset values const currentUrl = window.location.pathname.substring(1); let isLoading = false; // Prevent multiple calls if (!currentUrl) { console.log("Current URL is invalid."); return; } const sentinel = document.getElementById("load-more-sentinel"); if (!sentinel) { console.log("Sentinel element not found."); return; } function isSentinelVisible() { const rect = sentinel.getBoundingClientRect(); return ( rect.top < window.innerHeight && rect.bottom >= 0 ); } function onScroll() { if (isLoading) return; if (isSentinelVisible()) { if (loadCount >= offset.length) { console.log("Maximum load attempts reached."); window.removeEventListener("scroll", onScroll); return; } isLoading = true; const currentOffset = offset[loadCount]; window.loadMoreItems().then(() => { let article = document.querySelector('#widget_1690 > div:nth-last-of-type(2) article'); intersectionObserver.observe(article) loadCount++; }).catch(error => { console.error("Error loading more items:", error); }).finally(() => { isLoading = false; }); } } window.addEventListener("scroll", onScroll); });
Join Our Newsletters

Sign up by email to receive news.

© 2025 Manila Bulletin The Nation's Leading Newspaper. All Rights Reserved.