Lanao del Sur 1st District Representative Zia Alonto Adiong expressed skepticism regarding whether Vice President Sara Duterte will personally attend the House of Representatives plenary sessions concerning her agency’s proposed 2027 budget.
The Office of the Vice President (OVP) is requesting approximately ₱2.2 billion as part of the proposed ₱7.2-trillion national budget for 2027. The budget request contains no allocations for confidential or intelligence funds.
Duterte’s attendance remains uncertain as she faces an ongoing Senate impeachment trial, in which members of the House are acting as prosecutors.
“Ako, I have that gut feeling that she will not be attending especially the plenary. Baka sa committee hearing, baka pumunta pa siya doon,” Adiong stated during a virtual press briefing on Thursday, August 20.
Adiong, who serves as vice chairperson of the House Committee on Appropriations, explained that his prediction is based on the Vice President’s historical attendance during past budget reviews.
“Just to be fair also, pumunta naman siya noong last na hearing, committee hearing, ng kanyang budget. But when it reaches the plenary, hindi ho siya pumunta at wala hong pumunta sa kanyang mga staff, kundi ako nagkakamali,” he noted.
The Vice President’s absence during previous House deliberations has repeatedly drawn scrutiny. In 2024, discussions regarding the OVP budget were deferred after neither Duterte nor an authorized representative appeared at the plenary session.
Adiong noted that a repeat absence would align with what he considers a continuous pattern of avoiding legislative and legal proceedings involving her mandate.
“If that would happen again, she’s just being consistent, wala siyang dinadaluhan. Hindi siya dumadalo sa kanyang budget, hindi rin siya dumadalo sa kanyang trial,” Adiong said.
“So she’s just being consistent about her, you know, not respecting legal processes and constitutional processes that involves not only her own case but her own office and mandate,” the lawmaker added.
The OVP’s budget proposal is set for review by the appropriations panel early next month, following the start of agency briefings on the 2027 National Expenditure Program on August 17.
House leaders previously noted that the OVP would receive courtesy and respect during the proceedings despite the pending impeachment trial.
The trial involves allegations surrounding the alleged misuse of ₱612.5 million in confidential funds across the OVP and the Department of Education, which Duterte headed from 2022 to 2024.
Addressing whether lawmakers could question the OVP regarding past confidential fund usage during the upcoming hearings, Adiong affirmed that members of Congress retain their constitutional oversight over public spending.
“Wala pa naman ding desisyon ang korte patungkol sa impeachment trial, no? So I don’t see any reason bakit magkakaroon ng restriction doon sa mga katanungan na alam naman po natin na this is simply a constitutional mandate that each individual congressman and representatives are exercising,” Adiong said.