Akbayan party-list Rep. Perci Cendaña said the more than P4 billion in intelligence and confidential funds under the Office of the President for 2027 should be subjected to the same strict scrutiny applied to Vice President Sara Duterte’s confidential funds.
Cendaña said the government must ensure stricter enforcement of Commission on Audit (COA) guidelines to prevent the misuse and wastage of public funds.
“Dapat the same way na yung Vice President’s confidential fund na dapat wala naman siya, ay in-scrutinize on that level, dapat ganoon din yung sa Presidente,” Cendaña said during an interview on Bilyonaryo News Channel’s At The Forefront with Atty. Karen Jimeno.
He said the Office of the President’s budget had undergone the required process in Congress but stressed the need for stronger implementation of rules governing intelligence and confidential funds.
“Dapat sa dulo magkaroon ng mas malinaw na enforcement yung ating COA guidelines,” Cendaña said.
He also called on the Executive branch to set an example in the transparent and judicious use of confidential funds.
Cendaña said Congress should also strengthen the Commission on Audit’s capacity to monitor such funds after noting concerns over the agency’s lack of capital outlay for the year.
He said COA needs additional resources particularly for the digitalization of its systems, to speed up auditing and improve its ability to examine government spending.
“So mahalaga itong capital outlay. Kaya up to now we are really advocating hard for COA’s proposal for capital outlay to be restored,” Cendaña said.
Cendaña said stronger COA monitoring is particularly important because audits of confidential funds can take time and may involve records and transactions that are difficult to scrutinize.
He stressed that while confidential operations may require secrecy, safeguards must still be in place to ensure that public funds are used properly.#