Sara Duterte faces new set of plunder, graft complaints over confidential funds

MANILA, Philippines – Former senator Antonio “Sonny” Trillanes IV and a civil society organization have filed a new set of plunder and graft complaints against Vice President Sara Duterte over alleged confidential funds misuse.

“This new filing encompasses alleged anomalies during Duterte’s tenure as Secretary of the Department of Education (DepEd) and as Mayor of Davao City, including allegations of receiving funds from personalities linked to the illegal drug trade,” the complainants said.

Trillanes and The Silent Majority (TSM) filed the complaint with the Office of the Ombudsman on Wednesday, January 21.

Trillanes and TSM listed the following allegations against Duterte:

• Plunder, malversation in relation to P650 million in confidential funds during Duterte’s stint at the Office of the Vice President and DepEd
• Plunder, malversation in relation to P2.7-billion confidential funds during Duterte’s term as Davao City mayor
• Graft, malversation over P8-billion worth of overpriced DepEd laptops under Duterte
• Graft, gross incompetence due to the P12-billion Commission on Audit disallowances of DepEd under Duterte
• Graft over P7 billion in unliquidated cash advances of DepEd when Duterte was secretary
• Graft, gross incompetence because only 192 classrooms were built out of the 6,000 target during her DepEd stint
• Alleged ill-gotten wealth and non-declaration in her Statement of Assets, Liabilities, and Net Worth of P2 billion in bank deposits and other assets
• Bribery, corruption over Duterte’s alleged receipt of money from a drug lord when she was Davao City mayor
• Unfit to hold public office, betrayal of public trust due to her threats to kill President Ferdinand Marcos Jr.

“The Vice President’s behavior to recklessly spend funds stems from her term as Davao City vice mayor, which she brought when she became the Vice President. This is an alarming behavior that she constantly does as the land’s second highest official,” TSM founder Jocelyn Acosta said in Filipino.

The group also took note of Ramil Madriaga’s affidavit in their allegation on Duterte’s alleged misuse of P650-million confidential funds.

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Madriaga, a detainee, alleged in his affidavit submitted to the Ombudsman in December 2025 that Duterte was involved in the misuse of confidential funds and money coming from Philippine offshore gaming operators.

Apart from being scant, Madriaga’s affidavit was also criticized because it resurrected rather old allegations against the Vice President.

“The documentary evidence for the Madriaga allegation portion are already part of the plunder complaint filed in December,” Trillanes said in Filipino.

The latest complaint against Duterte comes nearly a month after Father Flavie Villanueva led the filing of a confidential funds-related complaint against her in December 2025. – Rappler.com