Solon uncovers more 'Budol Gang' names in OVP’s confidential funds

The list of alleged recipients of the Office of the Vice President’s (OVP) confidential funds continues to raise eyebrows, as lawmakers uncover more names suspiciously resembling junk food brands and cell phone manufacturers.

House Deputy Majority Leader and La Union 1st District Rep. Paolo Ortega revealed new details on Thursday from the annexes of the impeachment complaint filed against Vice President Sara Duterte.

According to Ortega, a closer review of the OVP’s acknowledgment receipts for its P500-million confidential fund expenditures between December 2022 and September 2023 revealed more seemingly fabricated names beyond the already infamous "Mary Grace Piattos."

Joining Piattos on the list were "Pia Piatos-Lim" and "Renan Piatos," as well as "Xiaome Ocho" — a name that bears an uncanny resemblance to the popular cell phone brand Xiaomi.

"Grabe naman ang 'special treatment' sa pamilya Piattos. May Mary Grace Piattos, may Pia Piatos-Lim, may Renan Piatos. Ano bang meron sa kanila at parang qualified silang lahat makatanggap ng confidential funds?” Ortega said. 

(The special treatment for the Piattos family is really amazing. We have Mary Grace, we have Pia, and we have Renan. What's special about them that they seem to be all qualified to receive the confidential funds?)

He further ridiculed the list, saying the presence of a name like “Xiaome Ocho” left him torn between laughter and frustration.

The La Union representative vowed to continue scrutinizing the impeachment complaint documents transmitted to the Senate, aiming to expose what he called the “Budol Gang” behind the alleged fraudulent disbursement of public funds.

Fake identities 

According to Ortega, certifications from the Philippine Statistics Authority (PSA) dated 8 and 11 December, 2024, revealed alarming discrepancies in the OVP’s confidential fund recipients. Out of 1,992 names linked to the OVP’s spending, only 670 had a "most likely match" in PSA records.

"Anong klase itong confidential funds disbursement na hindi natin matukoy kung totoong tao ba ang mga tumanggap?" Ortega questioned. 

(What kind of confidential fund disbursement is this if we can't even verify whether the recipients are real people?)

P125 million gone in 11 days

The controversy initially erupted when "Mary Grace Piattos" was discovered in Commission on Audit (COA) documents. She was listed as having signed an acknowledgment receipt for confidential funds on 30 December 2022 — part of the P125 million that allegedly vanished in just 11 days.

"Public funds ito, pero parang ginamit sa isang imaginary payroll," Ortega said. 

(These are public funds, but it seems like they were used for an imaginary payroll.)
Ortega pressed Vice President Duterte to explain where the confidential funds actually went, given the apparent use of fictitious names as recipients.

"She needs to explain who exactly makes up this ‘Budol Gang’ when she presents her defense at the impeachment trial," he asserted.