The Department of Justice (DOJ) is asking senators to restore its confidential funds for 2027 to this year’s level of about P1.1 billion, warning that reduced allocations could affect information gathering, witness protection and operations against trafficking and cybercrime.
Justice Secretary Fredderick Vida made the appeal Thursday during the Senate deliberation on the DOJ’s proposed 2027 budget.
The department is seeking to retain its 2026 funding level instead of the roughly P579.4 million proposed for next year.
“Ang amin pong hiling sana ay maibalik man lang yung 2026 level para hindi maapektuhan nang malaki” (Our request is to at least restore the 2026 level so our operations will not be greatly affected), Vida said.
The proposed allocations are part of the P7.2-trillion National Expenditure Program (NEP) for 2027 submitted by the executive branch to Congress.
Vida said the proposed reductions would affect several confidential activities.
For the DOJ central office, he said only P34 million was proposed, compared with the P214 million the department sought. The Witness Protection Program, meanwhile, was allocated about P319.9 million instead of the P500 million the DOJ wants restored.
Vida also cited the Inter-Agency Council Against Trafficking, which has a proposed P10-million allocation. He said additional resources are needed as the council faces growing challenges in its operations.
He also sought the restoration of confidential funding for cybercrime operations, noting that the work requires coordination among the DOJ, National Bureau of Investigation (NBI), Department of Information and Communications Technology and other agencies.
Senator Panfilo Lacson questioned whether the proposed funding would be enough to support the DOJ’s cybercrime operations.
“Kung i-divide mo ng 12, 35,000 a month? … Ano ma-accomplish mo” (If you divide it by 12, that’s P35,000 a month. What can you accomplish?), Lacson said.
Vida also asked senators to provide at least P5 million for the National Coordination Center against Online Sexual Abuse or Exploitation of Children and Child Sexual Abuse or Exploitation Materials.
He said the center received no confidential fund under the proposed budget and that combating these offenses has become increasingly complicated.
Senate Committee on Finance chair Joseph Victor “JV” Ejercito said confidential and intelligence funds would undergo closer scrutiny during this year’s budget deliberations.
He also acknowledged that agencies involved in law enforcement, investigation and national security have operational requirements for such funds.
Meanwhile, the Bureau of Immigration retains its P20-million confidential fund under the proposed 2027 budget, the same amount it received this year.
Immigration Commissioner Joel Anthony Viado said additional funding would help support the bureau’s intelligence force of fewer than 100 agents operating nationwide, including its fugitive search operations.
“Nationwide po ang operations namin. So makakatulong po nang malaki kung iyan po ay madadagdagan” (Our operations are nationwide, so an increase would help us greatly), Viado said.
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