The Senate impeachment trial is the proper forum for Vice President Sara Duterte to answer findings by the Commission on Audit (CoA) on the alleged misuse of confidential funds, Tingog Party-list Rep. Jude Acidre said Sunday.

Acidre said Duterte should respond under oath to questions surrounding about P73 million in confidential funds that CoA ordered returned by the Office of the Vice President.

“There are questions that cannot be set aside. The question now is what the Vice President knew and what she did,” Acidre said.

He said only Duterte could explain why the confidential funds were spent and the purpose of the operations she approved.

“Her officers could only attest to how the funds were used. However, it is only the Vice President who can explain why they were used and for what purpose based on the operations she approved,” he said.

Acidre urged Duterte to present her explanation before the Senate impeachment court, saying testimony under oath carries greater weight than statements made during interviews, press conferences or on social media.

Actual ops?

“In an impeachment, the question is not only whether a crime was committed. It is also whether a public official still deserves the people’s trust,” he said.

House Deputy Speaker Paolo Ortega echoed the call, saying Duterte must prove the confidential funds were spent on legitimate intelligence operations that benefited national security.

“The issue is whether there were actual informants, actual operations and actual intelligence outputs corresponding to the funds released,” Ortega said.

“We are not saying it has already been proven that there were ghost operations. What we want are answers supported by evidence,” he added.

Ortega also questioned the withdrawal of confidential funds through checks encashed at banks, saying the transactions left little trail showing how the money was eventually spent.

Last Wednesday, officials from Land Bank branches servicing the Office of the Vice President and the Department of Education testified that P625 million was withdrawn between 2022 and 2023.

However, the bank officials said they were unaware that the funds were confidential in nature.

The House prosecution panel is scheduled to present CoA officials when the impeachment trial resumes Monday.

The witnesses are expected to testify on audit findings involving acknowledgment receipts and supporting documents submitted by Duterte’s office.