NATIONAL
Advocates Philippines
P5K Vs. P612M? Kapunan Questions Double Standard In Accountability Row
Photo credit: Atty. Lorna Kapunan
A veteran lawyer is raising a blunt—and uncomfortable—question: if a public school principal can spend over a decade behind bars for misusing just P5,000, should a sitting vice president face anything less than full scrutiny over hundreds of millions in allegedly mishandled funds?
Atty. Lorna Kapunan didn’t mince words as she drew a sharp comparison between two cases now being talked about in legal and political circles. In a radio interview, she pointed to a ruling upheld by the Sandiganbayan, where a principal from Virac, Catanduanes was sentenced to 11 years in prison for falsification and malversation involving a small amount of public funds.
According to Kapunan, the case stemmed from a discrepancy in a purchase report. The principal claimed to have bought 28 bags of cement worth P7,000, but records showed only eight bags were purchased for P2,000—leaving P5,000 unaccounted for. The courts found this enough to warrant conviction.
“P5,000 lang ‘yan, pero 11 years ang kapalit,” she emphasized, underscoring how even relatively small misuse of public funds can carry heavy consequences under the law.
From there, Kapunan pivoted to the much larger controversy involving Vice President Sara Duterte. The vice president is currently facing an impeachment complaint over the alleged misuse of P612.5 million in confidential funds—P500 million from the Office of the Vice President and P112.5 million from the Department of Education during her time as secretary.
The House Committee on Justice has already found probable cause, citing findings from the Commission on Audit. Among the red flags: disallowed expenses due to lack of proper documentation and failure to prove that funds were used for legitimate confidential operations.
Adding to the controversy, the Philippine Statistics Authority reportedly found that many names listed as recipients of confidential funds had no records in the civil registry. Meanwhile, the National Bureau of Investigation flagged irregularities in receipts, saying several appeared to have been written by only a few individuals despite carrying different names and signatures.
Kapunan also highlighted findings from the Anti-Money Laundering Council, which flagged P6.77 billion in suspicious transactions linked to Duterte and her husband’s bank accounts. To put that into perspective, she said, a minimum wage earner would need more than 11,000 years to earn that amount.
Still, Kapunan clarified that impeachment is not a criminal case. Even if convicted in the Senate, Duterte would only be removed from office and permanently barred from holding any public position. Jail time would only come if she is later convicted in a separate criminal case.
That possibility is already on the table. A plunder complaint has been filed before the Office of the Ombudsman by former senator Antonio Trillanes IV. If it progresses and results in conviction, it could carry severe penalties, including imprisonment.
For Kapunan, the issue ultimately boils down to consistency.
If the justice system can move decisively against a school principal over P5,000, she argues, then the same standard—if not stricter—should apply when the figures reach into the hundreds of millions.
Atty. Lorna Kapunan didn’t mince words as she drew a sharp comparison between two cases now being talked about in legal and political circles. In a radio interview, she pointed to a ruling upheld by the Sandiganbayan, where a principal from Virac, Catanduanes was sentenced to 11 years in prison for falsification and malversation involving a small amount of public funds.
According to Kapunan, the case stemmed from a discrepancy in a purchase report. The principal claimed to have bought 28 bags of cement worth P7,000, but records showed only eight bags were purchased for P2,000—leaving P5,000 unaccounted for. The courts found this enough to warrant conviction.
“P5,000 lang ‘yan, pero 11 years ang kapalit,” she emphasized, underscoring how even relatively small misuse of public funds can carry heavy consequences under the law.
From there, Kapunan pivoted to the much larger controversy involving Vice President Sara Duterte. The vice president is currently facing an impeachment complaint over the alleged misuse of P612.5 million in confidential funds—P500 million from the Office of the Vice President and P112.5 million from the Department of Education during her time as secretary.
The House Committee on Justice has already found probable cause, citing findings from the Commission on Audit. Among the red flags: disallowed expenses due to lack of proper documentation and failure to prove that funds were used for legitimate confidential operations.
Adding to the controversy, the Philippine Statistics Authority reportedly found that many names listed as recipients of confidential funds had no records in the civil registry. Meanwhile, the National Bureau of Investigation flagged irregularities in receipts, saying several appeared to have been written by only a few individuals despite carrying different names and signatures.
Kapunan also highlighted findings from the Anti-Money Laundering Council, which flagged P6.77 billion in suspicious transactions linked to Duterte and her husband’s bank accounts. To put that into perspective, she said, a minimum wage earner would need more than 11,000 years to earn that amount.
Still, Kapunan clarified that impeachment is not a criminal case. Even if convicted in the Senate, Duterte would only be removed from office and permanently barred from holding any public position. Jail time would only come if she is later convicted in a separate criminal case.
That possibility is already on the table. A plunder complaint has been filed before the Office of the Ombudsman by former senator Antonio Trillanes IV. If it progresses and results in conviction, it could carry severe penalties, including imprisonment.
For Kapunan, the issue ultimately boils down to consistency.
If the justice system can move decisively against a school principal over P5,000, she argues, then the same standard—if not stricter—should apply when the figures reach into the hundreds of millions.
May 1, 2026
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