Senator-judge Risa Hontiveros questioned the reported use of medicines as rewards under the Office of the Vice President's (OVP) confidential funds, with former Commission on Audit Intelligence and Confidential Funds Audit Office (COA-ICFAO) state auditor Roderick Wamil testifying that it was the first such case he had encountered in his auditing experience.
During the 13th day of Vice President Sara Duterte's impeachment trial on Wednesday, Hontiveros asked whether providing medicines in exchange for intelligence information was a normal practice in confidential fund operations.
"So muli sa karanasan po ninyo sa ICFAO, and based on your expertise, normal po ba iyon na gamot ang kapalit ng intelligence information?" Hontiveros asked.
"Hindi po siya normal po, Your Honor," Wamil replied.
When asked if he had previously encountered medicines being used as payment for information, Wamil answered, "Hindi pa po. First time po dun sa may OVP po, Your Honor."
Hontiveros then inquired whether COA had investigated why an individual would first have to provide intelligence information before receiving medicines.
"Na-investigahan niyo po ba sa ICFAO kung bakit kailangang magbigay muna sa intelligence information bago siya bigyan ng gamot?" she asked.
"Hindi po, Your Honor," Wamil responded, explaining that the audit conducted by the ICFAO was document-based.
Asked how such a transaction would be classified, Wamil said it could be viewed either as a reward payment or as the provision of medicines.
"Pwede po kasing tingnan ’yan. Kasi since document-based po kami, pwede po siyang tingnan as payment of rewards, pero pwede rin po siyang tingnan as provision of medicine," he testified.
Hontiveros noted that the latter could also be interpreted as a form of assistance or aid.
The senator-judge later referred to an acknowledgement receipt presented during the proceedings, which allegedly indicated that an individual identified as "Mary Grace Piattos" received ₱70,000 worth of medicines as a reward.
"Si Mary Grace Piattos, ayon sa isang acknowledgement receipt, si Mary Grace Piattos ay nakatanggap ng ₱70,000 worth ng gamot bilang pabuya. Ano po ba yung sakit niya?" Hontiveros asked.
Wamil replied that the submitted documents did not contain such information.
"Wala, hindi ko po malalaman since wala naman po doon sa document po na sinubmit," he said.
When Hontiveros asked whether the ICFAO had a way of determining the recipient's medical condition, Wamil said auditors could ask for clarification if necessary, although their review is generally limited to the submitted documents.
"Pwede po namin tanungin, Your Honor. Pero since document-based po kami, kung ano lang po yung nasa document, yun lang po yung malalaman namin," Wamil said.
He added that under Section 6.2.3.7 of the Joint Circular, auditors are allowed to seek clarification when they encounter unusual transactions.
The exchange formed part of the senator-judges' clarificatory questions as the Senate impeachment court continued hearing Article I of the Articles of Impeachment, which concerns the alleged misuse and misappropriation of confidential funds by Vice President Sara Duterte.
