Lawmakers assure sufficient budget for OVP

Lawmakers assured the Office of the Vice President (OVP) will receive a sufficient budget for 2025 to perform its constitutional mandate.

Senate Minority Leader Aquilino "Koko" Pimentel III stated that the OVP should be given adequate funds for staff, office, utilities, library, briefings, meetings, conferences, and travel.

This statement follows Vice President Sara Duterte's assurance that she and her office can operate even without government funding.

Duterte admitted hearing reports of possible defunding for the OVP after a public disagreement with some lawmakers.

She did not attend the scheduled budget deliberations for the OVP before the House Committee on Appropriations.

The possibility of defunding arose after her absence from a previous hearing concerning the OVP's proposed P2.037-billion budget for 2025.

A letter from Duterte to House Speaker Martin Romualdez left the approval of the OVP budget to the discretion of the House Committee on Appropriations.