Witness testimony on Army certification
A military official testified on Tuesday that the certification his unit issued to the Department of Education (DepEd) for youth activities made no mention of any funds, as the impeachment trial of Vice President Sara Duterte resumed.
Col. Manaros Boransing II, former assistant chief of staff for civil military operations of the 1st Infantry Division and now commander of Task Force Zamboanga, told the Senate impeachment court that the certification only attested to DepEd's and other stakeholders' participation in the Youth Leadership Summit (YLS) and Information Education Campaign (IEC).
"There was no mention of any funds in the certification that we issued," Boransing said, as quoted by The Manila Times.
He added: "The certification was their DepEd's and other stakeholders' participation in the Youth Leadership Summit and the Information Education Communication Campaign."
The prosecution presented Boransing as a witness in the trial of Duterte, who faces impeachment charges. He testified that no funds—regular or confidential—were released to the 1st Infantry Division by DepEd in 2023.
"As I earlier said, sir, no funds whatsoever or any amount was downloaded to the First Infantry Tabak Division for 2023 for the Youth Leadership Summit and information, education, communication campaigns, sir, by any government agencies," he said, according to SunStar Publishing Inc.
Funding of youth activities
Boransing said the funds used by his unit for the YLS exclusively came from the budget of the Armed Forces of the Philippines (AFP). He described the YLS as an inter-agency program led by the 1st Infantry Division, aimed at preventing youth recruitment to violent extremism. Other agencies involved in the activity shoulder their own expenses, he said.
During questioning by Senator-judge Risa Hontiveros, Boransing agreed that the Philippine Army and local governments normally fund YLS and IEC activities without DepEd, though he noted he could only speak for his own division.
Certification and confidential funds
Boransing's certification was used by DepEd to justify the use of confidential funds amounting to P15.54 million out of the agency's P112.5 million in confidential expenses in 2023, as reported by SunStar. The amount was part of the P75 million in DepEd confidential funds initially flagged by the Commission on Audit (COA) for lack of supporting documents.
Boransing said former DepEd undersecretary retired Major General Nolasco Mempin requested the certification, but he was not initially made aware that it would be used to justify the use of confidential funds. He also admitted that he only learned his certification had been included in DepEd's submission in response to a COA Observation Memorandum.
Prosecution counsel Reynaldo Robles said the certification was allegedly used to support DepEd's use of the P15.54 million, citing it as proof of the success of its information-gathering or surveillance activities, as reported by The Manila Times.