The Commission on Audit (COA), on Wednesday, June 8, flagged the Presidential Commission on Good Government (PCGG) for unreliable accounting in the agency’s “Abandoned/ Surrendered Property/Assets,” noting that it had left unreported over 100 items in its inventory which include artworks and luxury paraphernalia.

“One hundred twenty-two (122) pieces of surrendered artworks such as paintings, statues, jars, framed wood carvings, wood carvings, tapestries, lithographs, framed cross stitch artwork, wine goblet, upright piano, decanter, collage, brass item, abstract, news clipping, framed news print, drawings, plaque, and brass sculpture found at PCGG station remained unrecorded in the books of PCGG, thereby understating agency’s Abandoned/ Surrendered Property/Assets account by its total fair market value which are yet to be determined,” COA wrote in its Executive Summary following the PCGG audit on June 8.

COA further noted that the PCGG’s reported “Abandoned/Surrendered Property/Assets” as of December 31, 2021 which amounted to P15,468,715,029.76 was flagged as unreliable due to the following:

A) unrecorded 76 surrendered/recovered stock certificates (STCs) or 772,594,488 shares amounting to P54,614,398.00 at par value;

B) inactive investments recommended for write-off by Management involving 77 STCs or P54,133,554.00;

C) unreconciled balances between the recorded shares in the books and the results of inventory of STCs aggregating P338,379,314.83; and

D) laxity in the monitoring and recovery efforts of the PCGG on dividend entitlements and return of investments due to the government on various shares of stocks,” it said.

As a result, COA recommended that the PCGG’s Asset Management Department (AMD) verify the agency’s inventory report pertaining to unrecorded items considered ill-gotten wealth; appraise the agency’s properties; account for the unrecorded P54 million in unrecorded surrendered STCs and to coordinate with the agency’s Chief Accountant for proper accounting of its books.

The PCGG was established in 1986 under the administration of the late President Cory Aquino to expedite the retrieval of ill-gotten wealth from the previous Marcos administration.

As per the PCGG website, the agency’s primary function is “the recovery of all ill-gotten wealth accumulated by former President Ferdinand E. Marcos, his immediate family, relatives, subordinates and close associates, whether located in the Philippines or abroad, including the takeover or sequestration of all business enterprises and entities owned or controlled by them, during his administration, directly or through nominees, by taking undue advantage of their public office and/or using their powers, authority, influence, connections or relationship".

Read COA’s audit report here: https://www.coa.gov.ph/wpfd_file/presidential-commission-on-good-government-executive-summary-2021/