A video on Facebook (FB) has claimed that ACT Teachers Party-list Rep. France Castro pushed for an increase in the budget of the office of the former vice president but is now blocking additional funding for the office of current Vice President Sara Duterte. This needs context.
On Sept. 30, an FB page published the video that bore the headline:
“Huli si France Castro na dinagdagan ang Budget na 1Billion noon ni Leni Robredo noong 2021 pero bakit pagdating kay VP Sara ay Kontra at hinarang? Talagang pinulitika at Namersonal ang Makabayan Bloc kay VP Sara!
(Castro was caught increasing the budget of former Vice President Leni Robredo by P1 billion in 2021. But why is she now opposing and blocking VP Duterte’s [budget]? She is really just politicking and the Makabayan bloc is taking things personally against VP Sara!)”
Suggesting that Castro is inconsistent, the narrator in the nine-minute video said the “plastic” lawmaker is playing politics by blocking the approval of the OVP’s budget under Duterte.
This needs context. While Castro raised concerns over VP Duterte’s use of confidential funds, she has not blocked the approval of the OVP’s entire budget. Meanwhile, during Robredo’s term, the solon wanted to increase the budget of the OVP to support its COVID-19 programs.
Push for budget hike due to OVP’s COVID-19 programs
During the 2021 budget deliberation, Castro, along with other lawmakers, pushed to increase Robredo’s budget by at least P1 billion to aid the OVP’s frontline services at the peak of the COVID-19 pandemic.
The approved 2022 budget of the OVP under Robredo, who did not ask for any confidential funds, was P713.4 million. In comparison, the OVP under Duterte received a budget of P2.3 billion for 2023.
During this year’s budget deliberations, Castro raised concerns over the spending of the confidential funds of Duterte’s OVP in 2022, sparking debates on the possibility of misuse of funds.
In 2022, the Department of Budget and Management granted the OVP confidential funds worth P125 million. Duterte originally asked for P250 million.
House Committee on Appropriations Vice Chair Stella Luz Quimbo, quoting reports from the Commission on Audit, said the OVP spent the P125 million contingency fund in just 11 days.
Castro said in a Sept. 26 interview that the OVP should return the P125 million contingency fund if the agency cannot explain how it was used.
FB page Robin Sweet Showbiz Official (created on March 31, 2021) published the video needing context, garnering over 5,900 reactions, 1,300 comments, 1,700 shares and 123,000 views.
(Editor’s Note: VERA Files has partnered with Facebook to fight the spread of disinformation. Find out more about this partnership and our methodology.)
