Unfazed by the Commission on Audit (COA) findings, the Office of the Vice President (OVP) has continued to expand its social services by opening its 10th satellite office in Legazpi City, Albay.
(2nd from left) Vice President Sara Duterte leads the opening of another satellite office in Legazpi City, Albay. (Inday Sara Duterte/Facebook)
The OVP under Vice President Sara Duterte announced the opening of the satellite office in Bicol region on Wednesday, July 19.
According to Duterte, they opened the satellite offices to make public access easier to OVP services.
“Maaaring bumisita ang ating mga kababayan sa Region 5 sa ating opisina na matatagpuan sa ANST III Building, Alternate Road, Legazpi City, Albay (Our countrymen from Region 5 may visit our office located in ANST III Building, Alternate Road, Legazpi City, Albay),” she said in a Facebook post.
The OVP has already set up various satellite offices in Davao, Zamboanga, Cotabato, Tandag, Cebu, Bacolod, Tacloban, Isabela, and Dagupan apart from its Mandaluyong City main office.
The establishment of OVP’s 10th satellite office came three weeks after the COA flagged Duterte’s office for failure to follow procurement rules on the immediate creation of its satellite offices nationwide.
“Our audit disclosed that OVP failed to fully observe the processes and procedures required under Republic Act No. 9184 and its implementing rules and regulations in the purchase of its plant, property, and equipment (PPE) and semi-expendable equipment in satellite offices amounting to P668,197.20,” the report read.
Duterte launched the Dagupan, Cebu, Tacloban, Zamboanga, Davao, and Tandag satellite offices on July 1, 2022, right after her inauguration as vice president.
In its response, which is also stated in COA’s report, the OVP cited time constraints imposed by the procurement law as the reason why purchases were done through reimbursement.
“Due to the time constraints imposed by RA 9184, the Procurement Unit was unable to process the requests at the time of the opening of the satellite offices on July 1, 2022. The Property Unit, on the other hand, does not have the necessary office equipment at the time of the opening,” the OVP said.
“Nonetheless, the SO staff exercised the necessary diligence to ensure that the items purchased are of the required quality and the lowest price offered in the market,” the office said.