Congress Questions Office of the President's Confidential Fund Allocation

A congressman questioned the Office of the President regarding its refusal to disclose how P4.55 billion in confidential and intelligence funds will be spent next year. The Office of the President is seeking P2.25 billion in confidential funds and P2.3 billion in intelligence funds, which are unchanged from this year. Garcia defended the allocation, stating the funds support national security and peace-and-order operations.

The questioning centers on the transparency of a large portion of the proposed budget, which accounts for almost half of the Office of the President's proposed P10.16-billion budget for 2027. The congressman noted that the Department of Justice had provided lawmakers with a breakdown of its confidential funds during its own budget deliberations.