PSA finding spurs investigation into OVP Confidential Fund recipients

The confirmation from the Philippine Statistics Authority (PSA) that Mary Grace Piattos has no records in its database has sparked calls for the agency to initiate a comprehensive review to verify whether other alleged recipients of the confidential funds of Vice President Sara Duterte's office really exist.

Deputy Majority Leader Paolo Ortega V said on Wednesday that this "serious red flag" necessitates a cross-check examination by the PSA to determine whether the acknowledgment receipts (ARs) submitted by the Office of the Vice President (OVP) to the Commission on Audit (CoA) are indeed legitimate or plagued by irregularities.

“The certification from the PSA opens up a Pandora’s box of potential anomalies,” he said. This isn’t just an isolated case. If a fabricated name was used to justify millions of pesos in spending, it undermines the integrity of public accountability. It also raises the question: how many more fake names might be buried in those ARs?” 

The PSA informed the House Committee on Good Government and Public Accountability that the name Mary Grace Piattos has a "negative record of birth," as well as marriage and death certificates, in its database.

The committee previously sought the assistance of the PSA to ascertain whether Piattos really exists amid speculation that the name could have been inspired by a popular local café or a brand of potato chips in an attempt to justify the use of multi-million-peso confidential funds. 

Piattos was among the thousands of alleged recipients of Duterte's P125 million in confidential funds, reportedly receiving the largest chunk via an AR dated 30 December 2022.

Ortega, echoing his peers, suggested that the supposed bogus AR under Piattos may only be the "tip of the iceberg."

“We can't stop at one. The PSA’s findings should serve as a springboard to conduct a deeper investigation. if one name was falsified, it is not unreasonable to suspect that other receipts may also contain fictitious names,” Ortega pointed out.

“If Mary Grace Piattos is a myth, what else is true in these documents? We need to ensure that every peso spent is accounted for and supported by truthful, verifiable records," he added.

Tingog Rep. Jude Acidre and Bataan Rep. Geraldine Roman had earlier warned of a possible scheme to falsify financial records within the current OVP, which Ortega believes could point to systemic fraud.

Duterte's Special Disbursing Officer, Gina Acosta, claimed that the surname "Piattos" exists in Davao City, where the Vice President once served as mayor.

House lawmakers have deemed the ARs “highly suspicious," citing irregularities such as identical ink signatures, incorrect dates, unsigned documents, missing names, and spurious entries like Piattos.

They alleged the ARs were likely fabricated or hastily submitted to the CoA.

The P125 million was spent by Duterte's office in just 11 days in December 2022. Of the total, P73.287 million was disallowed by CoA due to a lack of "documents evidencing the success of information gathering and/or surveillance activities" for which the funds were reportedly used.

Duterte has repeatedly denied any misuse of funds, calling the House probe a "well-funded" and "coordinated political attack" intended to discredit and impeach her.

She also claimed that she had not seen the ARs where the name “Mary Grace Piattos" supposedly appeared.