Of late, the behavior and pronouncements of the country’s second most powerful leader have taken an even weirder turn, hardly making her an exemplar of decorum or an inspiration to Filipinos to become better versions of themselves.

After treating members of the House Appropriations Committee with disdain during the first round of deliberations on the Office of the Vice President’s 2025 proposed budget in August — questioning House rules, dodging members’ questions on her past confidential expenses, interrupting the presiding officer, Marikina Rep. Stella Quimbo, whom she demanded be replaced because she didn’t like how Quimbo was conducting the briefing — she snubbed the subsequent hearing on 10 September.

That prompted the House panel to slash the OVP’s original request for over P2 billion for 2025, forwarding to the plenary a budget substantially pared down to only P700 million.

Next, appearing at a hearing of the Committee on Good Government and Public Accountability into the OVP’s utilization of funds on 18 September, Vice President Sara Duterte refused to be placed under oath because, according to her, she was there as a “resource person” and not as a witness.

She also accused the committee of not conducting an “ordinary legislative inquiry” but a “well-funded and coordinated political attack,” and then went on to ask that the committee hearing be terminated “for its clear lack of any proposed legislation or substantive matter for discussion.”

Then, portraying herself as a victim of persecution, she stated, “You may try to destroy me, you can skin me alive and throw my ashes to the wind, but let it be known, you will find me unbowed.”

All that drama, when all that was being asked of her was to explain how the P125 million in confidential funds obtained by the OVP during her first year as Vice President in 2022 was all spent in record time — around P11 million per day for 11 days in December of that year.

Rejecting VP Duterte’s demand that the inquiry be stopped, the Committee on Good Government and Public Accountability, the equivalent of the Senate’s Blue Ribbon Committee, last Wednesday went on to hear the testimony of Atty. Gloria Camora, leader of the team of state auditors that reviewed the OVP’s confidential expenses in 2023.

Camora, a CoA intelligence and confidential funds audit officer, said that other than the OVP, she was not aware of any other government agency that used confidential funds to deliver food and medical aid. VP Duterte’s office was flagged for disbursing P82 million for these items under confidential expenses in 2023.

Other items listed by the OVP under confidential expenses were P15 million for the payment of rewards and P10 million for incentives and travel in Q1 2023; P12 million for payment of rewards and P10 million for incentives and travel in Q2 2023, and P35 million for payment of rewards in Q3 2023.

So many questions on the way the OVP was being run, and it seems bizarre that being asked legitimate questions on a matter of utmost interest to the public would be taken as a form of persecution.

But it does bring one to wonder why a public servant, nay, the second topmost political leader of the country, would refuse to clarify for lawmakers how exactly she spent the people’s funds that were entrusted to her.

And why would she feel oppressed when queried about this matter? Why would she feel persecuted when all that was being asked of her was to enlighten the people’s representatives on how she — her office — used the money of the people?