A congressional leader confirmed on Sunday that authorities are still determining whether the names “Chel Diokno” and “Marian Rivera” found in records linked to the Office of the Vice President’s (OVP) confidential funds refer to the well-known public figures.
Rep. Zia Alonto Adiong, House Assistant Majority Leader and lawmaker from Lanao del Sur, said only official agencies like the Philippine Statistics Authority (PSA) and the National Bureau of Investigation (NBI) can verify the identities behind the names that appeared in the controversial documents.
“There is one Chel Diokno that exists as an informant, a possible intelligence informant, and indeed receives acknowledgment receipts,” Adiong said in a Sunday interview on DZBB. However, he clarified that they have not yet established any connection between this individual and Atty. Jose Manuel “Chel” Diokno, the Akbayan party-list representative-elect.
Adiong also emphasized that many of the acknowledgment receipts tied to the confidential fund disbursement have not yet been thoroughly reviewed. He said this lack of full documentation during the initial House investigation last year left many questions unanswered.
The controversy flared anew when Diokno himself reacted online on May 23 to reports that his name was among those associated with the OVP’s fund releases.
“Is everyone on the confidential funds list? They even included the name of Ma’am Marian and my name! That is just shameless!” Diokno posted in Filipino.
The names under scrutiny go beyond Diokno and actress Marian Rivera. Investigations earlier found other supposed recipients of confidential funds with unusual or fabricated-sounding names, such as “Mary Grace Piattos,” “Jay Kamote,” and “Miggy Mango.” Many of these were later confirmed to have no official records.
A House committee report in December 2023 revealed that out of 1,992 individuals linked to OVP’s confidential funds, 1,322 had no birth records, 1,456 had no marriage records, and 1,593 had no death records, based on PSA data.
