Defense lawyer Michael Poa on Tuesday apologized to the camp of former Vice President Jejomar Binay and clarified his earlier remarks during the impeachment trial of Vice President Sara Duterte, saying he did not intend to single out or implicate any former official in discussions about confidential funds.

Speaking at a post-trial press conference, Poa said he deliberately avoided naming any past vice president when he raised the issue of a 2014 confidential fund allocation for the Office of the Vice President (OVP).

“Actually, I have to apologize if I offended anyone from VP Binay’s camp. I didn’t want to drag his name into this,” Poa said.

“Pinipilit kong hindi sabihin talaga kung sino yung vice president. Sinabi ko lang na may pondo sa OVP noong 2014.”

Poa’s statement came after exchanges on the 12th day of the impeachment trial, where Commission on Audit (COA) auditor Roderick Wamil testified that Duterte was the only vice president he audited during his time at the Intelligence and Confidential Fund Audit Unit.

The defense counsel said the testimony should be understood in context, explaining that Wamil’s answer referred only to his tenure in the audit unit and not to the entire history of the vice presidency.

“Ang tanong is, noong nag-audit ka, sinong vice president lang na-audit mo sa ICFAO at ang sagot ay si VP Sara Duterte,” Poa said.

“Pero yung pangalawang tanong, bakit? Ang sagot kasi ng ating testigo is because during my tenure or time in ICFAO, siya lang naman yung vice president na may ganong appropriation.”

To counter claims that Duterte was the first vice president to receive confidential funds, Poa said he presented a Special Allotment Release Order (SARO) issued by the Department of Budget and Management (DBM) showing that the OVP had such funds in 2014.

He said the document was used during cross-examination to address what he described as “misleading” narratives circulating on social media suggesting that no previous vice presidents had confidential fund allocations.

“I wanted to clarify on the second point that because as you know, sa socmed kahapon, ang dami ko nang nakita eh na parang pinapalabas si VP Sara lang, ang first ever vice president na nagkaroon ng confidential funds,” Poa said.

Poa added that the existence of confidential funds in the OVP is not inherently improper, noting that previous officials who had access to such funds likely had legitimate reasons for their use.

He also emphasized that officials handling confidential funds are required to submit liquidation reports to the COA, including its Intelligence and Confidential Fund Audit Office.

“The only point I wanted to make there because I wanted naman to protect the rights of my client, especially rights against yung itong mga misleading information na siya lang yung vice president na nagkaroon ng confidential funds. I think that's unfair,” Poa said.

The impeachment trial of Duterte continues, with both prosecution and defense panels presenting evidence related to the alleged misuse of confidential funds.