Congress has oversight on confidential fund use – ex-COA exec

MANILA, Philippines — Vice President Sara Duterte cannot use confidentiality as an excuse not to respond to questions of lawmakers regarding her office’s use of confidential funds, a former Commission on Audit (COA) commissioner said.

In an interview with “Storycon” on One News yesterday, former COA commissioner Heidi Mendoza said Congress has oversight over the use of confidential and intelligence funds.

She cited the joint circular on the use of these funds, which mandates the submission of accomplishment reports to the president, Senate president and speaker of the House.

“When you submit an accomplishment report, it follows that you can be asked (about it),” Mendoza said in a mix of English and Filipino.

“Congress has the power of the purse, which they can exercise not just in aid of legislation but also oversight. When they ask questions related to oversight, you cannot snub Congress,” she added.

The former COA official confirmed that aliases may be used by agencies when reporting how they utilized confidential funds, but stressed that these should be guided by clear processes and “control measures.”

For instance, she said there should be a journal where the real identities of the recipients are listed.

“So if there is a demand, you will be able to show this journal where (the real names) are listed,” she pointed out.

In the case of Duterte’s offices, Mendoza noted the report from the Philippine Statistics Authority that some of the recipients matched their records and appear to be real persons.

“When is the time that you used an alias and when is the time when you used the real names (in the acknowledgement receipts)?” asked the former COA official.

Duterte, she said, must confront the issue directly instead of trying to evade questions from lawmakers.

“We reached a point where there is a lot of doubt (on how the funds were used),” said Mendoza, noting that the issue has also become an interest of national security.

“The country is asking, ‘how did you use the funds?’… If you insist that you will not respond to Congress, then my question is, ‘to whom will you be made accountable?’ Congress is the representative of the people,” she added.