The Commission on Audit (COA) has ordered three supervisors of the Light Rail Transit Authority (LRTA) to return P930,000 in disbursements made for the purchase of bank gift certificates distributed to members of the state-run firm’s board of directors in 2013.
(MANILA BULLETIN FILE PHOTO)
In a decision, the three-man COA-Commission Proper affirmed with finality the Notice of Disallowances (ND) issued by the COA Corporate Government Sector Cluster 3 in 2016.
The audit body, headed by COA Chairman Michael Aguinaldo, denied a petition for review filed by Evelyn Macalino, Ma. Corazon Pascual, and Ma. Leonora Brucal for being in default.
The case stemmed from the disbursement of P930,000 made by the LRTA personnel to purchase gift certificates from the Land Bank of the Philippines that were distributed to LRTA directors to cover representation and miscellaneous expenses in 2013.
In their petition for review, the three LRTA personnel said they already complied with the required documents sought by COA in connection with the disbursements.
In its review of the jurisdictional facts to determine the timeliness of the filing of the petition, the COA-CP noted 132 days have passed since the petitioners received the ND on March 28, 2014.
Another 64 days elapsed since the issuance of the CGS-Cluster 3 decision up to the filing of the appeal.
“Having attained finality, the decision is immutable and unalterable and may no longer be modified in any respect,” the COA panel explained.
However, COA said that even if the petition was decided on the merit, it will still be denied.
The audit body said the purchase of gift certificates as representation and miscellaneous expenses of the BOD violates Executive Order NO. 24 and other various COA regulations.
“Although petitioners subsequently complied with the submission of the required documents, they failed to present evidence showing that the disbursements were used in connection with the performance of official duties as there was no proof submitted in support thereof like the notice of meetings and minutes of meeting,” the COA-CP said.
It added: “The mere allegation that the subject disbursements were used in meetings cannot be given much weight being self-serving and absent any evidence or documents that would prove or justify that they were indeed used for these purposes.”