Twenty-five minors were allegedly listed as payees in documents involving the confidential funds of the Office of the Vice President (OVP) and the Department of Education (DepEd), Philippine Statistics Authority (PSA) Assistant National Statistician Marizza B. Grande testified on Monday, September 7, during Day 22 of Vice President Sara Duterte’s impeachment trial.
Grande took the witness stand as the prosecution continued presenting evidence under Article I of the Articles of Impeachment, which concerns the alleged misuse of confidential funds allocated to the OVP and DepEd.
During her testimony, Grande said the PSA’s June 26, 2026 re-verification found 20 minors listed in the OVP records and five minors in the DepEd records, based on information contained in their birth certificates.
“Based po dun sa June 26 na verification po namin, nakita rin namin that as per record, meron pong 20 na menor de edad doon po sa OVP list at doon naman po sa DepEd list, based on record po, meron pong 5 na menor de edad based sa kanilang mga birth certificates po,” Grande said.
The prosecution further noted in its offer of testimony that three of the individuals identified as minors were allegedly not yet three years old at the time relevant to the records being examined.
Grande was questioned by prosecution lawyer Atty. Mae Divinagracia regarding the re-verification requested by the House of Representatives on June 25, 2026, particularly involving entries that initially yielded a single match in PSA records.
Following the completion of the re-verification, Grande said the PSA formally transmitted its findings to the House Committee on Justice.
“Following po yung standard protocol po, kami ay nagpadala ng sulat at ng official na mga certifications at certified copies ng mga documents sa Committee on Justice through the Public Prosecutor Team po,” Grande testified.
The PSA official’s testimony is intended to help establish whether individuals identified as recipients or payees in the confidential fund documents could be matched with official civil registry records.
During the hearing, Divinagracia also attempted to ask Grande about individuals in the records who had already died and what information could be established regarding them in 2022.
The defense immediately objected, arguing that the question was speculative.
“Objection, Your Honor. Speculative, Your Honor,” the defense said.
Presiding Officer Senate President Chiz Escudero sustained the objection and instructed the prosecution to move on.
Grande’s testimony forms part of the prosecution’s effort to scrutinize the identities and supporting documents of individuals allegedly listed as recipients of confidential funds under the OVP and DepEd. The defense will have the opportunity to challenge the testimony and evidence presented by the prosecution as the impeachment proceedings continue.
