MANILA, Philippines – Disbursing officers from the Office of the Vice President (OVP) and the Department of Education (DepEd) admitted that they have no knowledge of how the confidential funds were used.

Former DepEd special disbursing officer Edward Fajarda and OVP special disbursing officer Gina Acosta claimed that the security officers were “in the field” to distribute the funds to the recipients.

Fajarda stated that he handed over the P37.5 million in confidential funds to DepEd security officer Col. Denis Nolasco, while Acosta said she handed the OVP’s P125 million confidential funds to Col. Raymond Dante Lachica.

When questioned by Rep. Ramon Gutierrez if he (Fajarda) “never had any interaction whatsoever with any of the recipients” of the confidential funds, Fajarda responded, “Yes, Your Honor.”

Fajarda confirmed that he relied solely on the acknowledgment receipts provided by Nolasco for the youth leadership summits, which the DepEd claimed were funded by the confidential funds. However, the Philippine Army has denied receiving any amount for these summits.

For the OVP, Acosta said she based her accomplishment reports entirely on the receipts provided by Lachica. She also admitted that she did not know any of the recipients of the confidential funds.

Both Fajarda and Acosta stated that they trusted the security officers after Vice President Sara Duterte informed them that the disbursing officers would handle the confidential funds.

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