Vico Sotto files complaint vs. Sarah Discaya over alleged election overspending

Pasig City Mayor Vico Sotto has filed a complaint against contractor Sarah Discaya for alleged overspending during the mayoral campaign in the 2025 May elections.

Sotto personally appeared at the Commission on Elections (Comelec) office in Intramuros, Manila Thursday to file the complaint accusing Discaya of underdeclaring her campaign expenditures for the Pasig mayoral polls in her Statements of Contributions and Expenditures (SOCE).

"Kapag binasa niyo po yung SOCE niya, nasa humigit kumulang P800,000 lang ang kanyang declared expenditures," Sotto told reporters.

(If you read her SOCE, she said she spent at least P800,000.)

"Nakita ninyo naman lahat kung ano yung ginawa nila noong campaign. Kayo na po ang maghusga kung yun lang talaga ang ginastos nila...Hindi makatotohanan ang kanyang SOCE. Malinaw na malinaw po yun," he added.

(But you saw her campaign materials. You are free to judge if that was truthful. For us, her expenditures under her SOCE was unrealistic.)

GMA News Online has reached out to the legal counsel of Discaya for comment and will publish it once available. Discaya is currently detained at the Lapu-Lapu City Jail in Cebu over her alleged involvement in anomalous flood control projects in Davao Occidental.

In his nine-paged complaint, Sotto said Discaya violated the allowable expenditure limit for campaigning and committed perjury when she "omitted matters about her campaign contributions and expenses and such omission would render the said SOCE to be false in a material respect".

Discaya reported spending P895,000 for her campaign in the 2025 Pasig mayoral elections, well-within the authorized campaign expenditures.

However, Sotto said a scrutiny of her SOCE found she only declared "expenses for stationery, printing, and distribution of printed materials relative to candidacy," allegedly omitting the large billboards, and digital videos she used for the campaign.

Discaya also allegedly failed to state in her SOCE "any amount - whether as contribution or expense - for her publicized political meetings, rallies, or caucuses."

"Sa atin po hindi na lang ito tungkol kay Discaya or sa team nila, ito po ay statement na sa lungsod ng Pasig, dapat sumunod tayo sa batas," said Sotto.

(For us, this is not about Discaya or her team. This is a statement that in Pasig City, we should abide by the law.)

"Darating ang barangay elections ngayong taon. Mensahe 'to sa mga nagnanais maging kapitan, kagawad, sumunod kayo. Ganun din, pagdating ng 2028, kahit sino pwede tumakbo pero sumunod kayo sa batas," he added.

(There will be barangay elections this year and this  will be a message to those who want to be barangay officials -- follow the law. The same goes for 2028 aspirants.)

Pasig City has a voting population of 463,885.

Under Section 13 of Republic Act No. 7166, a candidate for mayor is allowed to spend P3 per registered voter if affiliated with a political party, or P5 if without party affiliation. 

Discaya, who ran against Sotto, was fielded under the Unyon ng mga Gabay ng Bayan. — RSJ, GMA Integrated News