Statement from Office of Sara Duterte Reveals Count of Beneficiaries of OVP Initiatives
OFFICE OF SARA DUTERTE – The Office of the Vice President released a statement on the beneficiaries of its programs in the past two (2) years.
The Senate and the House of Representatives’ finance committees have deliberated several budget proposals of the different offices. One of those that went through the scrutiny of the lawmakers and the House member is the budget proposal of the Office of the Vice President for 2025.
Previously, the Department of Budget and Management (DBM) revealed that the Office of Vice President Sara Duterte is seeking for a P2 billion budget for 2025. The said budget proposal does not include Confidential Funds.
To recall, the OVP was grilled in 2023 for its rapid and massive spending of its 2022 CIFs. However, during the deliberation of the Senate and the House of Representatives of the 2025 budget proposal of the OVP, Vice Pres. Duterte had a spar with the lawmakers and some House members.
Vice Pres. Sara Duterte and Senator Risa Hontiveros had an exchange of heated remarks during the Senate deliberation of the OVP budget proposal for 2025. It came after the Senator expressed her desire to make a motion for the re-allocation of some of the funds of the OVP and asked about the P10 million budget allotted for the distribution of the book entitled Isang Kaibigan which was written by Duterte.
Vice Pres. Duterte also had a spar with some House members during the deliberation of the OVP budget proposal at the House of Representatives. The deliberation was moved but Duterte was no show at the resumption of the deliberation of the OVP budget proposal for 2025.
Following her absence at the deliberation, there are talks that the Office of Sara Duterte may be defunded. The Vice President reacted by saying that her office can operate even without a budget as it is only a small office.
Recently, amid the issues surrounding the budget proposal of the office of Sara Duterte for 2025, the Office of the Vice President (OVP) released a statement regarding the beneficiaries of its programs and initiatives in the past two (2) years.
Based on a report on GMA News, the OVP said that it assisted 2,027,164 individuals through its relief, medical, and burial programs. According to Duterte’s office, 1.5 million of the said beneficiaries availed the services of the OVP through its satellite offices and two (2) extension offices in the Philippines.
Here are the beneficiaries of the programs of the officer of Sara Duterte:
- National Capital Region — 227,370 beneficiaries
- Davao Region — 175,908 beneficiaries
- Western Visayas — 129,851 beneficiaries
- Central Visayas — 115,874 beneficiaries
- Calabarzon — 15,199 beneficiaries
- Bicol Region — 11,150 beneficiaries
- Zamboanga Peninsula — 9,660 beneficiaries
Based on the report, under the Office of the Vice President’s budget proposal for 2025, the OVP is seeking to extend services to 1.4 million Filipinos across the nation through its initiatives.