Philippines Senate hears testimony on Vice President Sara Duterte's alleged misuse of confidential funds

The Senate impeachment trial of Vice President Sara Duterte is focusing on the alleged misuse of ₱612.5 million in confidential and intelligence funds allocated to the Office of the Vice President for 2022‑23 and ₱112.5 million allocated to the Department of Education. Prosecutors have called Commission on Audit officials to testify about the audit process, disallowance notices and the use of fictitious recipient names in liquidation documents.

The defense has refused to stipulate the authenticity of 845 acknowledgment receipts for the OVP and DepEd confidential funds, while acknowledging the allocations of P125 million to the OVP and P37.5 million quarterly to DepEd. The Commission on Audit has issued notices of disallowance and ordered the return of the disputed amounts.