THE House Committee on Good Government and Public Accountability has requested the Department of Justice (DOJ) to issue a lookout bulletin order against seven officials from the Office of the Vice President (OVP) in connection with its investigation into alleged mismanagement of government funds under Vice President Sara Duterte.

Manila 3rd District Rep. Joel Chua, chair of the committee, made the request following subpoenas issued to compel these officials to testify after their repeated absences from prior hearings and potential involvement in financial irregularities.

The officials named in the request include OVP Chief of Staff Zuleika Lopez; Assistant Chief of Staff and Bids and Awards Committee Chair Lemuel Ortonio; Administrative and Financial Services Director Rosalynne Sanchez; Special Disbursing Officer (SDO) Gina Acosta; and Chief Accountant Juleita Villadelrey.

Also summoned were former Department of Education (DepEd) Assistant Secretary Sunshine Charry Fajarda and SDO Edward Fajarda, both reportedly now with the OVP.

The Fajarda couple were close aides to Vice President Duterte during her tenure as DepEd Secretary from July 2022 until she resigned in July 2024.

In his recent letter to DOJ Secretary Jesus Crispin Remulla, Chua said the testimonies of these OVP officials are crucial to the investigation and to ensuring accountability for public funds.

Chua noted that his panel has received information indicating that these individuals may be preparing to leave the country.

“Considering these developments, I earnestly request your office to issue a Lookout Bulletin Order against these personalities,” Chua stated in his letter to Remulla.

“This action is imperative to monitor their movements and prevent any potential attempt to flee the country, which could significantly hinder our investigation and broader efforts to uphold the integrity of public service,” he added.

The investigation by Chua’s committee originated from a privilege speech delivered by Manila 2nd District Rep. Rolando Valeriano, who accused Duterte of fund mismanagement in the OVP based on findings by the Commission on Audit (COA).

COA disallowed over P73 million of the P125 million in confidential funds allocated to the OVP in 2022—amounting to nearly 60 percent of the total.

Even more alarming, COA reported that this amount was spent within just 11 days, from December 21 to 31, 2022, averaging over P11 million per day.

In its Notice of Disallowance, COA ordered Duterte, along with Acosta and Villadelrey as “accountable officials,” to return the disallowed P73 million to the government.

Since the inquiry began, none of the seven OVP officials have attended the hearings.

The Chua-led panel has expanded its probe to include alleged irregularities within the DepEd during Duterte’s tenure.

Lawmakers were particularly concerned over the P112.5 million in CIFs, which remain unaccounted for despite being withdrawn as cash advances by one of the Vice President’s close aides during her tenure as Secretary of DepEd.

The funds in question were withdrawn through three separate checks, each valued at P37.5 million, issued to then-DepEd SDO Edward Fajarda. These cash advances were made in the first three quarters of 2023 when Duterte was leading the department.

Edward Fajarda’s wife, Sunshine Charry, was also named in previous testimony by former DepEd Undersecretary Gloria Jumamil Mercado, who disclosed that she received regular cash payments from the Vice President allegedly intended to influence her in her role as the agency’s head of the procuring entity.

Mercado testified that she received envelopes containing P50,000 each month from February to September 2023, totaling P450,000, allegedly delivered by Assistant Secretary Fajarda on behalf of Vice President Duterte.

During the recent hearing by the House Committee on Good Government and Public Accountability, retired Maj. Gen. Adonis Bajao, Lt. Col. Carlos Sangdaan Jr., and Colonels Manaros Boransing and Magtangol Panopio denied receiving a P15-million payment from confidential funds allegedly allocated to pay informants.

These military officials issued certifications for Youth Leadership Summits (YLS), a regular anti-insurgency program led by the Armed Forces of the Philippines (AFP) in 2023.

However, DepEd reportedly used these certifications to justify a P15-million expense for informant rewards instead.

Lawmakers also expressed shock at the Office of the Vice President’s (OVP) use of P16 million in confidential funds to rent 34 safehouses for only 11 days in the last quarter of 2022. Some safehouses cost nearly P91,000 per day—higher than the rates at high-end resorts like Shangri-La Boracay.

Chua questioned whether these safehouses were actually luxurious properties, noting that similar rentals in Bonifacio Global City typically cost around P90,000 per month, far lower than the daily rate of P91,000 paid by the OVP.

Records show that the OVP made payments ranging from P250,000 to P1 million per property owner between December 21 and 31, 2022.

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