Sara Duterte says she's not seeking confidential funds for OVP in 2025

Vice President Sara Duterte on Saturday bared that her office is not seeking confidential funds following next year’s budget program set at P6.352 trillion.

“For the Office of the Vice President, no, wala kaming proposal ng confidential funds for [next year],” Duterte said in an ambush interview with reporters in Cebu on the sidelines of the Pasidungog awards for partners of the OVP in the implementation of various programs.

(We do not have a proposal for confidential funds for next year.)

Duterte had also previously let go of the P500 million confidential and intelligence funds (CIF) under the proposed 2024 national budget.

During the plenary deliberations on the 2024 proposed budget of the Department of Education (DepEd), Senator Pia Cayetano said that Duterte had also let go of the agency's P150 million confidential funds.

Duterte announced her resignation as DepEd chief and vice chairperson of the National Task Force to End Local Communist Armed Conflict (NTF-ELCAC) last week.

In a statement announcing her resignation, Duterte said her resignation as DepEd was not due to weakness but out of concern for teachers and students.

At a press briefing following the 188th Development Budget Coordination Committee (DBCC) meeting on Thursday, Budget Secretary Amenah Pangandaman announced that the proposed 2025 national budget is equivalent to 22% of the country’s gross domestic product (GDP).

Next year’s proposed spending program is also 10.1% higher than this year’s national budget of P5.768 trillion.

The P6.352-trillion proposed 2025 budget is also higher than the P6.2-trillion national expenditure plan announced in April. —KG, GMA Integrated News