Bicol Saro party-list Rep. Terry Ridon – Photo courtesy of Terry Ridon/Facebook
Bicol Saro party-list Rep. Terry Ridon said on Monday that the Office of the Vice President’s use of confidential funds beyond their intended purpose already constitutes malversation.
He made the remark following findings by the Commission on Audit’s Intelligence and Confidential Funds Audit Office, which issued notices of disallowance covering Php 73 million in 2022 and Php 375 million in 2023.
Ridon said multiple criminal cases could be pursued against Vice President Sara Duterte and other officials, but stressed that malversation would be easier to establish under the law.
“Do’n po sa criminal aspect, maraming mga pwede hong maikaso, sa Pangalawang Pangulo, kay Col. (Raymund Dante) Lachica, do’n po sa mga involved po ng mga personalidad, hindi lang ho plunder, kun’di pati ho malversation,” he said.
He explained that while plunder requires proof that the accused gained from the funds, malversation may be established simply by showing that public money was used for purposes outside its legal mandate.
“At the very least, they can file malversation complaints against the vice president and Col. Lachica because funds were used not for its intended purpose. This means, if you use it for a non-confidential expense, that seems outright malversation,” he added.
Ridon also cited earlier complaints filed by various groups before the Office of the Ombudsman, accusing Duterte of graft, plunder, and malversation linked to the alleged misuse of confidential funds.