House probe bares OVP had 34 safehouses in 2022

MANILA, Philippines —  Liquidation papers submitted by Vice President Sara Duterte herself to the Commission on Audit (COA) showed the Office of the Vice President (OVP) kept a total of 34 safehouses since she assumed office in mid-2022 until fiscal year 2023.

The slideshow presentation displayed during yesterday’s hearing on the probe of the OVP’s alleged misuse of funds by the House committee on good government and public accountability revealed that the rental rates of the safehouses ranged from P25,000 per night to as high as P1 million.

In December 2022 alone, rental payments totaled P8.75 million – P3.7 million for Dec. 27, P2.6 million for Dec. 28 and P2.4 million for Dec. 29.

But according to the OVP’s liquidation papers, which Duterte herself and special disbursing officer Gina Acosta signed in December 2022, the “rental of safehouses” reached a total of P16 million, which probably represented the fourth quarter expenditures of the same year.

COA records indicated the OVP spent as much as P91,000 daily for a month’s rent of a premium condominium unit in Bonifacio Global City (BGC) in Taguig and P25,000 every night for safehouses they have rented in “luxury resorts.”

Panel chairman Rep. Joel Chua compared the rental prices to other properties in BGC, noting that monthly rentals in the area are typically around P90,000, far lower than the daily rate of P91,000 purportedly paid for by the OVP.

Based on lawmakers’ estimates, the P16 million OVP spent for 11 days – or roughly P91,000 daily – is way higher than rates in world-class five-star hotels in world-renowned Boracay, specifically high-end resorts like Shangri-La Hotel Boracay.

The Chua committee found out the OVP spent a total of P53 million in rental of safehouses from the last quarter of 2022 up to the third quarter of 2023 – all covered by 34 acknowledgment receipts issued by Duterte.

The panel also revealed the breakdown of the costs. In fourth quarter of 2022, the OVP had P16 million that was spent only for 11 days, while in first quarter 2023 another P16 million was used for 53 days. Second quarter 2023 saw another P16 million disbursed for 67 days, while in the third quarter of the same year,