NATIONAL
Advocates Philippines
Trillanes Files New Plunder, Graft Complaints Against Sara Duterte
Photo credit: Antonio Trillanes
MANILA — Former senator Antonio Trillanes IV and members of civil society group The Silent Majority filed plunder and graft complaints against Vice President Sara Duterte before the Office of the Ombudsman on Wednesday, January 21, 2026.
Trillanes announced the filing on social media, saying he and the group submitted the complaints early Wednesday morning and urged the Ombudsman to act swiftly.
The complaints allege a series of irregularities dating back to Duterte’s time as vice mayor and mayor of Davao City, and later as vice president and education secretary. According to reports, the filings accuse her of misuse of public funds, including around ₱650 million in confidential funds from the Office of the Vice President and the Department of Education, and ₱2.7 billion linked to her tenure in local government.
The complaints also cite other alleged irregularities, including claims of overpriced laptop purchases during her leadership at the Department of Education, unliquidated cash advances, Commission on Audit disallowances, and questions about classroom construction targets.
The filing builds on earlier complaints in December 2025 that focused on confidential funds, but Trillanes and The Silent Majority framed this latest action as an expanded effort to hold Duterte accountable across multiple offices she has held.
No official statement has yet come from the Office of the Vice President regarding the new complaints, and the Ombudsman has not announced a timeline for its review.
Duterte previously dismissed similar allegations as a “fishing expedition” by critics aimed at undermining her credibility, though her camp has not yet responded to the latest filing.
The renewed legal action is likely to keep public attention focused on questions of government accountability and the handling of public funds.
Trillanes announced the filing on social media, saying he and the group submitted the complaints early Wednesday morning and urged the Ombudsman to act swiftly.
The complaints allege a series of irregularities dating back to Duterte’s time as vice mayor and mayor of Davao City, and later as vice president and education secretary. According to reports, the filings accuse her of misuse of public funds, including around ₱650 million in confidential funds from the Office of the Vice President and the Department of Education, and ₱2.7 billion linked to her tenure in local government.
The complaints also cite other alleged irregularities, including claims of overpriced laptop purchases during her leadership at the Department of Education, unliquidated cash advances, Commission on Audit disallowances, and questions about classroom construction targets.
The filing builds on earlier complaints in December 2025 that focused on confidential funds, but Trillanes and The Silent Majority framed this latest action as an expanded effort to hold Duterte accountable across multiple offices she has held.
No official statement has yet come from the Office of the Vice President regarding the new complaints, and the Ombudsman has not announced a timeline for its review.
Duterte previously dismissed similar allegations as a “fishing expedition” by critics aimed at undermining her credibility, though her camp has not yet responded to the latest filing.
The renewed legal action is likely to keep public attention focused on questions of government accountability and the handling of public funds.
Jan 21, 2026
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