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COA flags Ormoc City over ‘ayuda,’ delayed infra projects

August 12, 2021 Jester P. Manalastas 835 views

THE Commission on Audit flagged the city government of Ormoc, Leyte on several projects that are deemed questionable like the rice distribution and delayed infrastructure.

In its 2020 audit report, the COA discovered unaccounted 1,526 sacks of rice amounting to P3.337 million.

Last year, the city government purchased 125,800 sacks of rice, amounting to P271.7 million to be distributed to the households as part of the pandemic response. This was recorded as Welfare Goods Expense and Other Maintenance and Operating Expenses accounts.

In view of the absence of any proof of distribution, state auditors presumed that the 1,526 sacks of rice have not been distributed and “are still on hand.”

“No inventory for undistributed goods was prepared or submitted to the Audit Team,” the COA said in its report.

The COA asked Mayor Richard Gomez, through the City Social Welfare Development Officer, to present a document, showing that the unaccounted sacks of rice have indeed been delivered and distributed to the beneficiaries.

The COA also revealed in the 2020 Annual Audit Report for Ormoc City that the city government has failed to implement a number of audit recommendations contained in the previous year’s AAR, including the delayed signing of the Notices of Award (NOA), contract agreements and notices to proceed (NTP) on some P296.85 million worth of infrastructure projects.

Moreover, state auditors also flagged the non-implementation of the COA recommendation of the city government’s memorandum of agreement with the Department of Social Welfare and Development for the construction of Transitional Shelter.

In its 2019 annual audit report, COA asked Ormoc City to return the P38.942 million it received from the DSWD for the implementation of the project and re-evaluate the need to implement the project.

Gomez’s office said it sent DSWD a notice for the termination of the MOA, which COA said it did not receive such information.