The bicameral conference committee late Tuesday night approved the 2026 proposed budget of the Office of the Vice President (OVP) at P889.2 million, maintaining the same amount proposed under the National Expenditure Program (NEP). This marks a reversal from the House of Representatives’ earlier version, which had reduced the OVP budget to P733 million. The reduction stemmed from Vice President Sara Duterte’s refusal to defend her office’s budget during deliberations. Duterte declined to answer questions regarding her office’s use of approximately P625 million in confidential funds from 2022 and 2023, citing an ongoing impeachment case and concerns over national security.
