VP Sara: AICS used to bankroll poll campaign of Romualdez-allied bets

Vice President Sara Duterte on Tuesday claimed that the Social Welfare Department’s (DSWD) Assistance to Individuals in Crisis Situation (AICS) program was used to fund the election campaign of congressmen backed by former House Speaker Martin Romualdez.

Duterte made the statement after Senate Blue Ribbon Committee chairperson Panfilo Lacson raised concerns about the “substantial” increases in AICS funding during the election years of 2022 and 2025.

For instance, funding jumped 68.8%, from P23.56 billion in 2021 to P39.76 billion in 2022, Lacson said.

In an interview, the Vice President alleged that some members of the House of Representatives were bribed to support impeachment charges filed against her.

“So dito makikita natin na ginamit sa pulitika yung AICS, ginamit sa mali yung pera. Sana tignan din nila yung mga iba pang congressional districts ng mga congressman na pumirma sa impeachment,” she said.

(So here we can see that AICS was used for politics; the money was misused. I hope they also look into the other congressional districts of the congressmen who signed the impeachment.)

“Binayaran through the budget ang mga members of the House of Representatives para pumirma sa impeachment,” Duterte added.

(Members of the House of Representatives were paid through the budget to sign the impeachment complaint.)

She, however, did not specify how much each House member allegedly received from the AICS allotment.

According to Duterte, the alleged misuse of AICS for political purposes was not limited to Davao City.

“Sana wag lang nila tignan ang Davao City dahil alam natin ang sagot diyan, ginamit nila ang AICS to fund congressional candidates that were backed up by Speaker Martin Romualdez. Sana ay tignan din nila yung ibang congressional districts na pumirma sa impeachment,” she said.

(I hope they don't only look at Davao City because we know the answer there: they used AICS to fund congressional candidates backed by Speaker Martin Romualdez. I hope they also look into the other congressional districts that signed the impeachment.)

GMA News Online has reached out to Romualdez's camp for comment and will post their statement once they respond.

On February 5, the House of Representatives filed an impeachment complaint against Duterte over allegations of betrayal of public trust, culpable violation of the Constitution, graft and corruption, and other high crimes. The complaint stemmed from the Vice President’s alleged misuse of her confidential funds and was endorsed by over 200 lawmakers.

Duterte entered a “not guilty” plea in the verified impeachment complaint, which she later described as a “scrap of paper.”

The Supreme Court previously declared the articles of impeachment unconstitutional, citing the one-year rule under the Constitution and noting that the complaint violated her right to due process.

The lower chamber then filed a motion for reconsideration, arguing that it should be allowed to perform its exclusive duty to prosecute an impeachable official.

The impeachment charges were transmitted to the Senate, which was supposed to act as the impeachment court with the Chief Justice presiding.

However, 19 of 24 senators voted to archive the impeachment complaint.—MCG, GMA Integrated News