MANILA, Philippines – Vice President Sara Duterte on Wednesday, November 13, said that the P1.3-billion budget cut in the 2025 proposed budget of her office could lead to the closure of 10 satellite offices nationwide.
Speaking to reporters after the Senate approved the Office of the Vice President’s (OVP) reduced P733-million budget, Duterte said that around 200 of her staff could lose their jobs due to the potential closure of 10 satellite offices in Albay, Davao, Zamboanga, Cotabato, Surigao, Cebu, Bacolod, Tacloban, Isabela, and Dagupan.
“‘Yung budget source nila natanggal. So, meron talagang mga personnel, particularly sa satellite offices na mawawalan ng trabaho,” Duterte said, when asked about the implication of the reduced budget
(Their budget source was removed. So, there will really be personnel, especially in the satellite offices, who will lose their jobs.)
“Mahihirapan kami kasi ngayon napapabilis ‘yung pagbaba namin ng aming mga projects dahil meron kaming satellite offices. Kumbaga, pagtapon namin ng funding doon sa kanila, merong opisina na sumasalo at gumagamit ng budget at i-implement ‘yung project. ‘Pag nagsara ‘yung satellite office, wala ng tao na tatanggap ng budget at mag-implement ‘yung project,” she added.
(It will be difficult for us because now we can expedite the implementation of our projects because we have satellite offices. It’s like when we allocate funding to them, there are offices that handle it and use the budget to implement the project. If the satellite office closes, there will be no one to receive the budget and implement the project.)
Critics have argued that the OVP’s satellite offices are unnecessary, pointing out that previous vice presidents like Leni Robredo were able to implement projects without them.
“VP Leni never had any satellite offices. If she needed coordination at the local level, she’d work with the local offices of national agencies, directly with local governments, or with civil society partners,” Barry Gutierrez, spokesperson of former vice president Leni Robredo, told Rappler in a previous interview.
The OVP’s proposed 2025 budget was significantly reduced from P2.037 billion to just P733 million due to Duterte’s refusal to answer questions about fund utilization and her absence during the House budget hearings. The House approved the OVP budget cut, which was later adopted by the Senate.
During the Senate plenary debates on the 2025 budget on Wednesday, Senator Bong Go, a close ally of the Duterte family, suggested that Congress consider restoring the original proposed OVP budget to ensure the continuation of its social services. Both the House of Representatives and the Senate had approved a zero budget for the OVP’s social services, which had been previously allocated P947 million.
Lawmakers questioned the necessity of funding these social services, arguing that the programs simply duplicate existing government initiatives managed by line agencies.
Senator Grace Poe, who sponsored the OVP budget, said that Go’s motion would be addressed at the appropriate time. While the Senate approved the proposed OVP budget, there would still be an opportunity to amend it during the bicameral conference before the 2025 budget is enacted into law. – Rappler.com