DICT Appeals for Reinstatement of 2023 Confidential Funds
The retention of the confidential funds of the DICT is reasonable but there must be an assurance of a strict checking on how it will be utilized.
After a house panel gave the Department of Information and Communications Technology (DICT) zero confidential funds, the government office is now appealing to reinstate its CIFs so it can boost the country’s defenses against cyberattacks.
The Confidential Funds is undeniably one of the heated topics in the Philippines now following the issues surrounding the spending of the 2022 CIFs of the Office of the Vice President. Under the watch of Vice Pres. Sara Duterte-Carpio, the OVP was able to spend P125 million in just 19 days – 11 days on initial reports.
The Confidential Funds was designed to support the activities and projects that are in line with the national security and peace and order.
Senator Risa Hontiveros who questioned the CIFs of the OVP expressed that the office had a higher CIF than a combined CIFs of the Department of National Defense (DND) and the National Intelligence Coordinating Agency (NICA).
Countless Filipinos are left with drowning questions on how it happened. The lawmakers assured the people that it will investigate and remove the CIFs of some offices when it is not necessary considering its mandate.
Following the probe, a House panel gave five government agencies zero Confidential Funds. The committee is in-charge for individual amendments of the proposed 2024 national budget.
- Office of the Vice President (OVP)
- Department of Education (DepEd)
- Department of Information and Communications Technology (DICT)
- Department of Foreign Affairs (DFA)
- Department of Agriculture (DA)
The DICT recently appealed for its Confidential Funds to be reinstated saying that the office needs it to build defense amid the series of cyberattack of government agencies. As for me, I believe that the DICT is one of the government agencies whose mandate is connected with the purpose as for what the CIF is designed for.
However, it is also important that the CIF that will be granted is, at least, somehow just proportionate to the amount that is needed by the DICT – not above it. Furthermore, there must be a clear path on how such fund will be liquidated to make sure that the funds were used well.
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