OVP reports spending P20.68 million on local, foreign 2025 trips

The Office of the Vice President (OVP) said Thursday that it spent P20.68 million on its local and foreign trips as of July 2025, covering the expenses of Vice President Sara Duterte's security and close-in personnel. 

At a press conference, OVP budget division chief Atty. Kelvin Gerome Tenido said that of the P20.68 million, a total of P13.207 million was spent for local travels, while P7.473 million was for foreign travels. 

"More or less around P20 million has been obligated for the travels of the OVP, including the expenses of the security personnel and the civilian personnel," Tenido said. 

He added that the money spent on local travels was about 40% of the total allocation for the OVP's 2025 budget, while the P7 million for foreign travels was more or less 25% of the office's budget for this year. 

OVP assistant chief of staff Lemuel Ortonio, however, clarified that Duterte pays for her own personal expenses when traveling abroad. 

"We'd like to emphasize that all the travel overseas of the Vice President is covered by a travel authority and did not include any public funds, did not use any public funds," Ortonio said. 

For the 2026 National Expenditure Program (NEP), Tenido said the OVP was allocated P20 million for its travel expenses under its proposed P902.895 million budget. 

"This is the lowest allocation since 2023 and the highest allocation was P31.5 million," he added. 

"Usually, it's the absorptive capacity of an agency. It's a standard protocol for all the agencies. I think the [Department of Budget and Management] applies the same for other agencies," he explained when asked why the proposed allocation for the OVP’s travel expenses is lower in 2026. 

Tenido also said that for the 2025 budget, the OVP still has a balance of P24.026 million for foreign trips and P17.585 million for local trips.

Under the 2025 General Appropriations Act (GAA), the OVP was allocated a P62.5 million budget for traveling expenses.

The OVP did not provide details regarding the number and destinations of Duterte's personal and official trips. The Vice President has repeatedly stated that she and her family cover their own expenses during their personal trips abroad. — VDV, GMA Integrated News