Most rotten?

He is familiar with the good, the bad and the ugly side of Congress. He can also distinguish lawmakers with integrity from those corrupt and power-hungry politicians.

Former president Rodrigo Duterte knows whereof he speaks when talking about the country’s “most rotten government institution.” He is among the few public servants who have served the legislature, executive and judiciary. Before being elected Davao City mayor for seven terms and our chief executive in 2016, he was a prosecutor from 1977 to 1986.

Mayor Digong, like myself, was a former member of the House of Representatives. He was Davao City’s 1st District congressman in the 11th Congress. I was a party-list representative in the 17th Congress. Thus, we have personal knowledge and direct experience of the “ins and outs” of the Lower Chamber.

Our maverick ex-leader also survived the worst kind of character assassination during his presidency. He weathered political demonization, domestically and internationally, to ensure the utmost protection of Filipinos from terrorism, criminality and illegal drugs.

Now, FPRRD sees his daughter, Vice President Sara Duterte, in the same situation. He knows that several forces are hell-bent on demolishing Sara’s political ascendancy. I understand where his anger and heartache stem from. No self-respecting and loving father would allow anyone to slander his child. His daughter has not faced any legal case related to graft and corruption.

Previously, I identified three main forces that are out for the VP’s scalp: the diminished cabal of pseudo-progressive members of the Opposition, the political Left cum sympathizer of communist terrorist groups (CTG) and the two-faced faction in the UniTeam alliance.

In a recent SMNI interview, Digong mentioned House Speaker Martin Romualdez as somehow behind the ongoing witch hunt on Sara concerning confidential funds (CFs). He disclosed that during the 2022 campaign season, his then-friend Martin intimated eyeing the presidency in the future. He OK’d the Speaker’s presidential ambition then. He assents until now. If he has his way, the older Duterte will prevent Sara from running for president in 2028.

However, Inday has consistently topped reputable presidential and public approval surveys. While her ratings declined in the latest Pulse Asia and Publicus Asia data, she remains the national official with the highest approval from the people. Let us compare the ratings of the VP and the Speaker. According to Pulse Asia, 73 percent of the public approved the performance of Sara. Martin scored 41 percent. Based on the Publicus survey, Duterte had a 62 percent approval rating. Romualdez had 37 percent.

The Speaker lags behind the VP when it comes to majority support. I urge Martin, whom I have been friends with since our UP College of Law days, to take this as a warning sign. At this point, our elected officials should focus on genuine public service and not on vested interests.

The former president also prodded the Commission on Audit (COA) to undertake an impartial audit of the Lower Chamber. And it should begin from the office of Speaker Romualdez. The COA should fully disclose the liquidation report of House members vis-à-vis the disbursement of the current appropriated funds and the previous congressional pork barrel, which the Supreme Court declared unconstitutional for violating the separation of powers doctrine (Belgica vs. Ochoa, 2013).

Should COA refuse, Digong vowed to ask every Filipino soldier, policeman, farmer, businessman and churchman to demand the release of the House liquidation report. With certainty, he said the audit would unmask Congress as the most rotten among our institutions.

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To increase the budget of agencies defending our West Philippine Sea (WPS) maritime features and territorial waters, the House committee on appropriations stripped the following agencies/departments of CFs: Office of the Vice President, education, ICT, foreign affairs and agriculture, which is under the helm of President Bongbong Marcos, Jr.

Looking deeper into the proposed General Appropriations Act, however, would show that the House of Representatives has allocated for themselves some P1.16 billion in Confidential, Intelligence, Extraordinary and Miscellaneous Funds. (For the identical budget entry, the Senate earmarked P331.9 million.) I would like to know if our congressmen are also willing to realign the P1.16-billion funds to the Armed Forces of the Philippines (AFP), National Intelligence Coordinating Agency and the Philippine Coast Guard. The reallocation will definitely boost the defense capabilities of our forces guarding the WPS.

Being the head of government and AFP commander-in-chief, PBBM has an allocated CF of P2.25 billion. His intelligence fund and extraordinary/miscellaneous fund have a budget of P2.31 billion and P23.5 million, respectively.

COA defines the CF as the amount paid for expenses related to surveillance activities in civilian government agencies that support the mandate or operations of the agency. Like the President, the Vice President is duty-bound to defend the 1987 Constitution and execute our laws (Article 7, Section 5). So why did the House deprive the OVP of confidential funds? Does it not violate the equal protection clause? In Tiu vs. Court of Appeals, the High Court said the clause is against undue favor and individual or class privilege. It requires that all persons shall be treated alike, under like circumstances and conditions as to privileges conferred and liabilities enforced.

As mayor, Sara demonstrated that the rational CF utilization led to a terrorist-free Davao City. As VP and education secretary, she can implement programs that eliminate subversive and terrorist elements in the country. The CTGs are known to recruit, brainwash and conscript minors in elementary and secondary schools.

Intelligence expenses, subject to the President’s approval, pertain to intelligence information-gathering activities of uniformed and military personnel and intelligence practitioners that directly impact national security. Extraordinary expenses are those incidentals to the performance of official functions, such as meetings and conferences, public relations, etc. The incidental costs also refer to the medical, burial or other assistance provided to their constituents.

The House and Senate leadership deny having confidential funds. A congresswoman even defended the extraordinary and miscellaneous funds as auditable. Full disclosure: during my time as congressman, we were not required to submit a liquidation report for extraordinary and miscellaneous expenses. We did not produce official receipts and other documentation. We were only asked to issue a certification of expenses. I heard this policy is still in place. In the interest of transparency and accountability, I hope the congresswoman comes forward and proves me wrong.