Philippines, MANILA (updated at 7:45 p.m.) — According to LP President Edcel Lagman (Albay representative), Stella Quimbo of Marikina City’s defense of the secret funds, particularly those given to the Department of Education, the Office of the Vice President, and the Maharlika Investment Fund, has sparked debate within the Liberal Party.
Sanctions against Quimbo have been demanded as a result of her viewpoint, which is in stark contrast to the position taken collectively by the party’s leadership and senior members.
“The defense of [Quimbo] of the confidential funds, particularly of the Office of the Vice President and the Department of Education, and the Maharlika Investment Fund, contrary to the collective position of the leadership and ranking members of the Liberal Party of the Philippines, has resulted in some clamor to sanction Rep. Quimbo as a Party member,” Lagman stated.
“Although it has to be noted that she has later conceded that the utilization and audit of secret funds must be made more transparent and officials made more accountable.”
Quimbo disclosed the OVP wasted its P125 million in confidential money in just 11 days during budget plenary discussions in the House of Representatives, exceeding the 19 days initially specified by Makabayan lawmakers.
Duterte later stated that the fund ran out after 19 days, although he did not provide many specifics about how it was used.
Quimbo is still a member of the LP, according to Lagman, who also emphasized that no sanctions have been applied and that this is done in honor of the right to free speech and the right to dissent.
“The foregoing decision was unanimously reached by the ManCom of the party, together with some district representatives, and Rep. Edcel Lagman, as president of the party, was authorized to issue this statement,” read the solon.
As of the time of publication, Philstar.com has already contacted Quimbo about the situation, but no response had been received.
This Thursday, House Speaker Martin Romualdez justified the lower chamber’s choice to transfer the classified and intelligence funding requested by Duterte to organizations in charge of defending the West Philippine Sea.
Editor’s note: A previous version of this article claimed Stella Quimbo, a representative from Marikina City, had the endorsement of the Liberal Party. Following the release of a revised statement by the LP President Edcel Lagman’s office, we were compelled to edit the article appropriately to reflect the change.
