Palace to VP Sara: Explain confidential fund recipients

The Palace has called on Vice President Sara Duterte to clarify the growing controversy surrounding the alleged fraudulent use of confidential funds, after a House probe revealed that more fictitious names — mockingly dubbed 'Team Amoy Asim' — were listed as supposed fund recipients.

“We believe that VP Sara has the obligation to tell something about this,” Presidential Communications Office (PCO) Undersecretary Claire Castro said during a press briefing. “Many reports are now circulating regarding fake receipts issued by the Office of the Vice President. It would be better if she explains this herself.”

The latest set of names — Amoy Liu, Fernan Amuy, and Joug De Asim — reportedly received portions of the Department of Education’s (DepEd) confidential funds while Duterte was its secretary. A verification check with the Philippine Statistics Authority (PSA) found no birth, marriage, or death records under those names, echoing previous discoveries of questionable fund recipients such as Mary Grace Piattos, Jay Kamote, Miggy Mango, and the Dodong Gang.

Deputy Majority Leader Paolo Ortega V, who is among the key House figures spearheading the impeachment proceedings against Duterte, said the emergence of fictitious names strengthens the case against her.

Funding the impeachment further

Duterte is accused of misappropriating P612.5 million in confidential funds between 2022 and 2023 — P500 million for the Office of the Vice President (OVP) and P112.5 million for the DepEd. Investigations have revealed widespread irregularities in liquidation reports, with a staggering number of supposed beneficiaries lacking any official identification records.

According to previous PSA findings, out of 1,992 names listed as OVP fund recipients, 1,322 had no birth records, 1,456 had no marriage records, and 1,593 had no death records. Similarly, out of 677 names listed under the DepEd’s confidential funds, 405 had no birth records, 445 had no marriage records, and 508 had no death records.

House prosecutors argue that these findings indicate a systematic scheme to fabricate fund disbursement records, further justifying Duterte’s impeachment, which is now awaiting trial in the Senate.

Duterte over Marcos?

The controversy over Duterte’s alleged fund misuse comes as tensions between her and President Ferdinand Marcos Jr. continue to escalate. During the same press briefing, Castro pushed back against Duterte's camp, which claimed that Marcos Jr. betrayed the man who supposedly restored the Marcoses' dignity.

“The one who brought President Marcos back was the people, not one person,” Castro said. “If you remember, wasn’t it former president Duterte himself who doubted President Marcos? He even said, ‘PBBM is a weak leader.’ How can he claim to have uplifted the dignity of President Marcos when he himself was the one pulling him down?”

Duterte loyalists have sought to paint Marcos Jr. as ungrateful, linking his administration to the International Criminal Court’s (ICC) probe into the former President’s drug war. The Palace, however, maintains that Marcos Jr. owes his presidency to the electorate — not to his predecessor.

Calls for Marcos resignation

Protests in The Hague, where Duterte supporters gathered to oppose the ICC probe, have also fueled calls for Marcos Jr. to resign. The Palace dismissed these demands, warning that the biggest beneficiary of such a move would be none other than Vice President Duterte herself.

“If they are calling for the President to resign, who stands to benefit?” Castro asked. “How can we allow this when we are following the law and being very transparent in all transactions? A leader who has many secrets, who hides so much, who refuses to show any documents — especially about the funds — will find it harder to govern.”