HOUSE leaders on Wednesday claimed “vindication” after the Senate adopted the House of Representatives’ decision to cut the 2025 budget for the Office of the Vice President (OVP) by P1.3 billion, reducing it from the requested P2.03 billion to P733 million.

Sen. Grace Poe, who chairs the Senate finance subcommittee reviewing the OVP budget, cited the lack of supporting documents from the office headed by Vice President Sara Duterte as a major reason for the Senate’s move.

This alignment between the two chambers affirms the House’s rigorous approach to budget scrutiny and vindicates its decision to reallocate funds to the Department of Social Welfare and Development (DSWD) and the Department of Health (DOH).

The bipartisan support for this budget reduction underscores frustration in both chambers over what lawmakers describe as a lack of transparency and cooperation from Vice President Duterte and her office.

House Assistant Majority Leader and Lanao del Sur Rep. Zia Alonto Adiong, who sponsored the OVP budget in the House, empathized with Poe’s struggles to obtain required budgetary documentation from the OVP.

“As a sponsor, alam ko ‘yung na-experience po ng Senate ngayon when they were asking for the documents,” Adiong told a press conference.

“It would be really difficult, and I feel for her because it really is difficult for a sponsor to really defend the proposed budget kung walang coordination ang ahensya na dinindepensa mo,” he added.

House Deputy Majority Leader and Tingog Party-list Rep. Jude Acidre called the Senate’s move a vindication of the lower chamber’s decision.

“It also vindicates the stance taken by the Hon. Zia being the sponsor of the budget of the [OVP] kasi alam naman natin na medyo binabatikos siya,” Acidre pointed out.

He continued, “Pero nakita natin dito, pati sa Senado ay patuloy pa rin na iniiwasan ng Tanggapan ng Pangalawang Pangulo ang pag-defend ng kanilang budget sa tama at saktong pamamaraan,” Acidre said.

Acidre criticized what he described as a troubling pattern in which the OVP seemed to consider itself “above the process” in budget matters.

“This is not the OVP’s money — it’s the people’s money,” he stressed.

For House lawmakers, the Senate’s alignment reflects a shared focus on fiscal responsibility.

Assistant Majority Leader and Ako Bicol Rep. Jil Bongalon, vice chair of the House Committee on Appropriations, emphasized that the decision to reduce the OVP budget was rooted in public interest, not politics

“The adoption of the Senate on the budget of the [OVP] is just really a confirmation that what we did in the House is just a result of a work that is fair and there’s nothing about politics here,” Bongalon said.

He explained that the reduced amount was not merely cut but “realigned” to the DSWD and DOH to strengthen social programs that directly impact the lives of Filipinos, particularly those most in need.

Cagayan de Oro City Rep. Lordan Suan cited the OVP’s absence at key budget hearings as further justification for their scrutiny, recalling Adiong’s visible frustration during the deliberations.

“I saw that he was really sincere in wanting to defend the budget of the Vice President, and with what happened in the Senate—in reaffirming the proposal or the version of the House—I think that we can’t blame the Senate and we can’t blame Cong. Zia,” Suan said.

He said that both chambers had done everything possible to fairly evaluate the OVP’s budget, but that it was difficult “to work with something if there is nothing to work with.”

The House initially moved to cut the OVP budget, citing overlapping services with agencies such as the DSWD and DOH.

It also noted OVP’s high rental expenses for satellite offices.

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