A Commission on Audit (COA) report has uncovered P27.9 million in idle or incompletely implemented fund transfers at the Tagbilaran City Government, hinting possibilities about financial mismanagement and failed project execution.
The latest audit found that the “Due to National Government Agencies (NGAs)” account balance of P27,918,457.51 included funds idle for over a decade, unspent portions of implemented projects, and recent fund transfers not fully put to use since the 9 years of reign of ex-Mayor Baba Yap until today’s administration of his wife, City Mayor Jane Cajes-Yap.
According to the report, this situation violates COA Circular No. 94-013 and potentially deprives source agencies of the opportunity to better utilize these resources.
The idle funds were broken down into several categories:
1. P2,500,000 remained unused for the construction of classrooms. The source agency for this amount could not be traced, leaving city management to decide whether to proceed with classroom construction or return the funds to the Bureau of Treasury.
2. P10,129,928.58 in implemented projects with disallowances or unspent portions not yet returned to source agencies. This includes P27,219.28 from the Bureau of Treasury and P10,000,000 from PDAF-Sen. Jinggoy Estrada, the latter marked as “spent but with disallowance.”
3. P6,017,528.93 in prior years’ projects not yet fully implemented. These range from a P70,431 project by the Philippine Health Insurance Corporation initiated in 2013 to a P1,287,874.36 Bureau of Treasury project from 2020, all listed as “ongoing” or in the procurement process.
4. P9,271,000 in recent projects not yet fully liquidated or implemented. These include health programs, facility improvements, and wages for 1,380 beneficiaries, expected to be completed in 2023.
COA noted the importance of timely project implementation. “Implementing projects within the timeline has to be the utmost priority to enable the intended beneficiaries to benefit from the government projects,” COA said in the report.
The audit observation highlighted the persistent nature of this issue, noting it as a reiteration of the previous year’s finding. This suggests ongoing challenges in the city’s financial management and project execution processes.
COA has also recommended that City Hall take several actions:
1. Require proper liquidation of granted amounts.
2. Ensure refund of excess project funds to donors.
3. Ascertain submission of liquidation reports.
4. Fast-track completion of ongoing projects.
In response, the city government cited challenges in retrieving some project documentation. “Some projects are left with none/limited data as papers/documents were destroyed during the earthquake and Typhoon Yolanda in 2013,” City Hall explained, referring to the 7.2 magnitude Bohol earthquake and Super Typhoon Yolanda that devastated parts of the central Philippines in October and November 2013, respectively.
For ongoing projects, city management assured they would process liquidation reports upon completion or final payments.
The audit’s findings raised questions about the efficiency of fund utilization in Tagbilaran City and the need for improved financial management practices, COA said.
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