Press Release
November 23, 2022

Transcript of Interpellation Senator Risa Hontiveros with Senator Sonny Angara on DepEd Confidential Fund Amendment
November 23, 2022

SRH: Mr. Chair, I was originally just going to make one amendment but I've broken it up in two parts because of the update just approved by the body from the Chair of the Finance committee. At this point I would like to make a motion to realign the P100 million which was earlier realigned from the Confidential Fund of the DEPED to the OVP MOOE back to DepEd MOOE in particular DepEd's HEALTHY LEARNERS INSTITUTION PROGRAM found in the "Support to Schools and Learners Program" of their budget. I so move, Mr. Chair.

SSA: We accept, Mr President.

SRH: Thank you, Mr. President. Just to clarify Mr President that is why I am so happily surprised earlier I thought that it might not be accepted but if it is accepted, thank you very much Mr. President and I'm sure all our education advocates can give a sigh of relief that at least they retained that P100 million but no longer in the confidential fund of DepEd but in the MOOE particularly the HEALTHY LEARNERS INSTITUTION PROGRAM found in the "Support to Schools and Learners Program". So, finally at this point Mr. President Mr. Chair, I would like to make a second and last amendment, which given the happy fate of the first amendment I can already guess the fate of this one, but for the record I shall still propose it, Mr. Chair.

At this point, finally, I would like to make a motion to realign the remaining P50 million of the confidential fund of the DepEd also in support of their HEALTHY LEARNERS INSTITUTION PROGRAM found in the "Support to Schools and Learners Program" of their budget specifically in reference to the appropriate pages and lines of the GAB, I move to remove the confidential funds of the DepEd found in Volume 1A of the GAB page 372 line 55 of the GAB in the amount of P50 million and transfer the same to augment the MOOE of the support to schools and learners of the DepEd found in Volume 1A of the GAB page 194 Line 31\. The new amount of the MOOE of the support to Schools and Learners Program will now be also including the P100 million subject of the earlier accepted amendment for which I thank my chair will now be P95, 852,200,000.00 I so move Mr. Chair. SSA: I regret to say I cannot the amendment but if the lady would be so kind to accept an amendment to her amendment, where we leave perhaps rather than a 0 balance of the DepEd perhaps we can leave a P30 million balance and realign the P20 million to your stated purpose so that we don't have to put our colleague's on the spot, madam chair.

SRH: Thank you, for not sending this representation away empty handed on her second proposed amendment. ...Since my proposed amendment though the chair did not send this representation away empty handed since my 2nd proposed amendment was not completely accepted may i then propose a special provision that will compel the DepEd to create a workplan on the use of their confidential funds these special provisions shall read DepEd workplan for confidential funds, the DepEd shall submit to both houses of Congress its proposed workplan for the appropriated confidential funds of the agency. I so move Mr. Chair.

SSA: We accept, Mr. President.

SRH: Thank your, Mr. President. And lastly I would like to put on record my continuing objection to the propriety of lodging confidential funds in agencies not involved in national security. The propriety and not just the amount Mr President is important because even the head of one of the agencies for which Congress was regionally appropriating confidential funds in the hearing here at the Senate said she would submit to the wisdom of Congress in terms of the propriety and the amount. Mayroon tayong mga ahensyang mas nangangailangan ng pondo para sa surveillance at ibang programa para sa seguridad ng bansa tulad ng ating adbokasiya para sugpuin and human trafficking at OSAEC.

Let me reiterate that we should leave these dangerous tasks to the professionals. Dagdag pa po diyan, all public funds should always be subject to audit dapat alam natin kung saan napupunta ang kaban ng bayan at kung sulit ba ang paglalaan ng ganito kalaking pondo sa isang ahensya dahil tens of millions are still tens of millions. And the exceptions to this must be very very strict. Panata po natin iyan sa mamamayan.

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