The Office of the Vice President (OVP) is seeking a ₱902.8-million budget for 2026, a 20% hike from its ₱744 million allocation in 2025.
But records show the OVP only requested ₱733 million for next year. It was the Department of Budget and Management (DBM) that raised the figure to nearly ₱903 million.
According to OVP spokesperson Ruth Castelo, the DBM initially added around ₱60 million to the OVP’s original request. This compelled the OVP to ask for more funds for personnel and IT equipment, resulting in the final 20% budget increase.
“Since this would require implementing programs, the OVP requested additional funds for more personnel and IT equipment,” Castelo explained.
Notably, the 2026 OVP budget carries no confidential funds — an item previously flagged for alleged corruption and cited in the shelved impeachment complaint against Vice President Sara Duterte.
Castelo earlier confirmed: “The OVP did not request confidential and intelligence funds for 2026.”
The OVP’s spending had faced sharp criticism during last year’s budget hearings, with lawmakers branding many of its programs as mere duplications of national agencies’ work. Duterte also skipped the hearings after a heated exchange with Congress members.