Wazzup Pilipinas!?
Once upon a time, confidential and intelligence funds were sacred—reserved exclusively for agencies with a clear mandate in national security: the Armed Forces of the Philippines (AFP), the Philippine National Police (PNP), and the National Intelligence Coordinating Agency (NICA). These funds were limited, with a specific purpose. Though not entirely transparent, they were not universally coveted. They were not desired by officials with no involvement in surveillance or intelligence operations. The rule was simple: if intelligence isn’t your job, you don’t need an intel fund.
But everything changed with the arrival of Rodrigo Duterte.
In 2021 alone, Duterte spent the entire ₱4.5 billion in confidential and intelligence funds allocated to the Office of the President. Spent. Gone. Without a traceable breakdown. Without public accounting. In a government that prided itself on discipline, there was none when it came to the people’s money. And with that, the floodgates opened.
Suddenly, almost every government office—regardless of its relation to national security—started requesting confidential funds. What was once a security-sector exclusive became the new normal in every budget proposal. The exceptional became routine. The rulebook was rewritten.
Fast forward to the Marcos Jr. administration: another ₱4.5 billion was approved for the Office of the President. Again, it is being gradually depleted—quietly, swiftly, and without explanation. The public sees no clear benefit. No measurable results. Just rapid spending. And an eerily silent system.
Ask why, and the reply is often: “At least we felt safe back then.”
As if mere feelings of security are enough to legitimize billions in untraceable spending. But when did “just a feeling” become the gold standard of good governance? When did safety become the excuse for silence? And when did it become acceptable for billions of pesos to vanish—without impact, without receipts, without answers?
This is not merely an issue of budgeting. It is a matter of principle.
Administrative Order No. 103 and Joint Circular No. 2015-01 by COA, DBM, and DILG clearly define the parameters of confidential and intelligence funds. These funds are not to be used for operational expenses, publicity, allowances, or anything unrelated to intelligence. There must be a purpose. There must be oversight. Yet in the current system, mechanisms of accountability are being ignored. What was once considered an “exceptional use” is now the go-to tool of unchecked power.
In public finance, this dangerous trend is called the normalization of unaccountability. When money is repeatedly spent without justification—and the public simply shrugs it off—impunity becomes permanent. History shows us that in authoritarian regimes, discretionary funds like these are not tools of national defense but weapons of political survival.
So, we must ask:
Why is our government addicted to untraceable funds?
Why can’t they function without secret slush money?
Why are those who question the system always seen as the enemy?
This isn’t about opposition—it’s about obligation. In a democracy, asking questions is not an act of rebellion. It is the very essence of citizenship. Every peso in the national budget is public money. And public money demands public accountability.
Because people’s funds are not drugs.
They should not be hoarded.
They should not disappear overnight.
And they should never, ever be without a receipt.
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Ross is known as the Pambansang Blogger ng Pilipinas - An Information and Communication Technology (ICT) Professional by profession and a Social Media Evangelist by heart.
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