Vice Pres. Sara Duterte Answers Questions on Budget Request for OVP for 2026
SARA DUTERTE – The Vice President explained why she decided not to ask for a bigger budget for the OVP in 2026.
After the Senate impeachment court has voted for the remand of the articles of impeachment against Duterte to the House of Representatives, senator judges Robin Padilla and Imee Marcos were spotted with Vice Pres. Duterte in Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia. They celebrated the PH Independence Day with the Filipinos abroad.
Countless Filipinos were hooked by Sen. Robin Padilla’s claim that he will be the campaign manager of Vice Pres. Sara Duterte and Sen. Imee Marcos in 2028. The Vice President previously said she has yet to decide on running for president in the next national elections.
Duterte is surrounded by controversies including the issues on the spending of the Confidential Funds of the Office of the Vice President (OVP) as well as the Department of Education’s when she was the DepEd secretary.
In 2024, the budget of the Office of the Vice President for 2025 suffered a huge cut to P700 million from P2 billion. Recently, shortly after her return from Malaysia, the Vice President answered questions about the 2026 budget request of the OVP.
The Office of the Vice President is holding the 2025 Pasidungog today. According to Vice Pres. Sara Duterte, it is through the event that they can express their gratitude to their partners in helping them accomplish the programs and works of the OVP.
Duterte mentioned the government, the private sector, the CSOs, and the non-government organizations. According to her, the OVP will not be able to do their work and extend the services they do without their partners. She also expressed her gratitude to the healthcare institutions.
“Nagpapasalamat kami sa kanila noh, sa ating mga healthcare institutions, sa kanilang parnership sa Office of the Vice President and sa kanilang recognitions sa kahalagahan noong serbisyong naibibigay natin sa underserved communities natin,” the Vice President.
However, during the press conference, Vice Pres. Sara Duterte admitted that the 2025 budget of the OVP led to the stopping of the medical and burial assistance as well as the feeding program. According to her, their budget could no longer accommodate the said assistance offers.
“Nakakalungkot lang dahil wala na kasi kaming medical and burial assistance. Ito ay tinanggal. Hindi namin siya malagyan ng budget dahil tinanggal talaga ‘yung line item sa Office of the Vice President noong lumabas ‘yung budget ng Office of the Vice President sa General Appropriations Act. Kaya matitigil ‘yung Medical and Burial Assistance pero masaya kami dahil nandiyan pa rin ‘yung mga healthcare institutions,” Duterte said.
Vice Pres. Sara Duterte was asked about the proposed budget of the OVP for 2026. According to her, they did not go far from the P700 million budget for their office in 2025.
“Sa 2026 budget, nag submit kami ng proposal na P733 million. Hindi siya kalayuan doon sa approximately P700 million na ibinigay noong nakaraang taon para sa Office of the Vice President,” the Vice President said.
During the press con, Vice Pres. Duterte was also asked why she decided not to ask for a bigger budget for the OVP in 2026. According to the Vice President, she expects that it won’t be granted allegedly because she is not an ally of the Marcos administration.
“Dahil inaasahan ko naman na hindi ibibigay ‘yung budget ng Office of the Vice President dahil nga hindi naman kami ka-alyado ng administrasyon…Ayaw kung napapahiya at pinapahiya ‘yung mga ibang personnel ng Office of the Vice President lalong-lalo na kapag nandun na sila sa House of Representatives or sa Senate na kaharap ‘yung ating mga miyembro ng Kongreso,” Duterte said.
During the press conference, Vice Pres. Sara Duterte reiterated the same stand on the call to inhibit the “bias” senator-judges in the impeachment trial against her. She is not in favor of the call.