The House of Representatives is planning to slash P1 billion from the proposed 2025 budget of the Office of the Vice President (OVP), according to ACT Teachers party-list Rep. France Castro. The OVP, currently requesting a P2.03-billion budget, could see cuts mostly affecting its socioeconomic programs, which some lawmakers deem redundant.
Speaking on ANC, Castro stated that the House Appropriations Committee was “resolved” to implement the reduction, regardless of Vice President Sara Duterte’s participation in the upcoming budget hearing.
“If the vice president wants, she can request funds from various agencies, just like other vice presidents have done,” Castro said.
House Appropriations Committee Chairperson Elizaldy Co supported the move, citing low utilization rates. He highlighted that less than 1% of the P150 million allocated for the OVP’s 2023 entrepreneurship program, Magnegosyo ‘Ta Day, was used, while there were also gaps in documentation for P65 million spent on distributed food items.
Co further added that the OVP’s budget for aid distribution should be redirected to agencies like the Department of Social Welfare and Development (DSWD), which have better checks and balances.
Despite discussions on budget cuts, some lawmakers have clarified that they will not push for the drastic measure of reducing the OVP’s budget to P1, as Duterte claimed might happen. TINGOG Party List Rep. Jude Acidre emphasized that while there may be differences with Duterte, her office’s constitutional mandate should be respected.
The proposed cuts follow Duterte’s absence from recent budget hearings and her statement that the hearings were “scripted.”