Senators on Tuesday, July 11 said the Philippine Coast Guard (PCG) will face scrutiny over its procurement of a luxury vehicle in the upcoming Senate deliberation on the proposed P5.268-trillion national budget for 2023. “We will question (them) during the budget season,” Senate Minority Leader Aquilino “Koko” Pimentel III said in a brief statement. “They should have been aware about administrative issuance and government policies in buying vehicles,” Sen. Juan Edgardo “Sonny” Angara said also when sought for comment. “That’s the job of their lawyers and legal officers,” added Angara, chairman of the Senate Committee on Finance. The Commission on Audit (COA), in its annual audit report, flagged the PCG’s luxury vehicle purchase in 2022 despite an existing ban on such procurement. Subject of the COA’s review is the PCG’s purchase of a six cylinder, 3956 CC Toyota Land Cruiser Prado worth around P5-million in 2022, which is prohibited under Administrative Order (AO) No. 14. State auditors also flagged PCG’s acquisition of new vehicles, including the Land Cruiser Prado, by using rebates from Petron Corp. Sen. Sherwin Gatchalian, likewise, vowed to look into it in the upcoming budget deliberations. “If we look at the budget hearings, most of the questions are about the COA report,” Gatchalian said during a Kapihan sa Senado forum. “The COA’s job is so important and Congress takes all COA report seriously,” he added. As to Petron’s claim they used rebates to purchase the luxury vehicle, Gatchalian said this is unacceptable. “In the first place, it’s not right to accept rebates. Whether personal or official, rebates are prohibited. Even worse, if you accepted it and used it to buy a luxury car,” he pointed out. “In principle, you cannot just buy a Mercedes just because you are the boss of an agency,” he further said.