OVP ‘ready for any eventuality’ amid possible 2026 budget cuts

MANILA, Philippines — The Office of the Vice President (OVP) on Wednesday said it is "ready for any eventuality" if its proposed P903 million budget for 2026 is trimmed.

READ: DBM hikes 2026 proposed budget for Sara Duterte’s office to P903 million

"The OVP is ready for any eventuality, whether the budget is reduced or reverted to P733 million for 2025," OVP spokesperson Ruth Castelo said in a press conference.

“We cannot do anything but proceed and pursue the programs that we already [have],” she added.

Castelo expressed confidence that lawmakers will pass the proposed budget, noting that it contains no confidential funds.

She cited Senator Win Gatchalian, chair of the Senate finance committee, who called the OVP’s budget “feasible” so long as it removes contentious items such as confidential funds.

“That means the budget of P933 million is already approved because it really does not contain confidential funds,” Castelo said.

READ: Confidential funds no longer 'free-for-all, says Gatchalian

According to Castelo, the OVP’s proposed 2026 budget is already broken down by program, with some allocations larger than the 2025 budget.

Among the programs that saw higher funding was the office’s disaster operations budget, which rose from P30.25 million to P56.62 million.

“Of course, this will necessarily include inflation and then the additional personnel that we will need to complete a bigger project…that’s included; that’s why we have an increase of P26 million,” Castelo said. With reports from Andrei Sabinay, INQUIRER.net trainee/mcm/abc

(2025/08/06-14:39)

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