By Genalyn Kabiling
The state-owned People's Television Network Inc. (PTNI) has submitted to the Commission on Audit (COA) supporting documents on the hiring of contractual employees to address concerns about their salary payment in 2018.
People's Television Network Inc. (PTNI) (YOUTUBE)
Julieta Lacza, officer-in-charge-general manager of PTNI, said she has taken full responsibility of the "pre-existing problem" on the payment for contract of service (COS) staffers and implemented "corrective measures" to resolve the situation.
"We already submitted to the COA in the first week of June 2019 required supporting documents pertaining to said payment of services of various COS staffers of the PTNI, which include their daily time records and accomplishment reports," she said in a statement issued Monday night.
"We are exerting all efforts to comply with all the requirements of COA," she added.
The audit commission has reportedly discovered that the state-owned TV network failed to submit supporting documents when it paid P89.68 million worth of salaries to contractual personal last year. Failure to submit documents such as time records and contract of service violates the government's auditing laws.
The commission has required the company to submit the required documents of such transaction or else it will issue a notice of suspension or disallowance.
Lacza said although the COA report referred to 2018 transactions, a year before her assumption as officer-in-charge general manager, she decided to take responsibility over the matter.
She said since she assumed the PTNI post in January 2019, various corrective measures have been implemented to enhance the process of accomplishing documents in the recruitment of staffers.
"This is with the end of emplacing the needed personnel, sustaining its daily operations, and complying with the requirements of various agencies including the COA," she said.
She said such steps have also been taken to help the television network produce quality news and development programs and attain its goals to educate people and bring the government closer to the public.