During a Senate hearing on the Office of the Vice President (OVP) budget, Vice President Sara Duterte and Senator Risa Hontiveros engaged in a heated exchange. Hontiveros questioned the allocation of the OVP’s budget, particularly her proposal to reallocate funds for social programs to other government agencies. Additionally, Hontiveros raised concerns about a book authored by Duterte being distributed by the OVP.
In response, Duterte criticized the inquiry as an attempt to politicize the national budget. She emphasized that the budget request was essential, as in the past, when the OVP referred people in need to other agencies, they were often turned down due to perceived partisanship. Duterte explained that the book in question focuses on the theme of friendship.
Duterte also noted that the OVP had declined the deployment of 38 Philippine National Police (PNP) personnel for her security, relying instead on the 337 personnel from the Armed Forces of the Philippines (AFP) assigned to the OVP.
