For “humanitarian consideration,” the Commission on Audit (COA) exempted an employee of the Philippine Carabao Center (PCC) from financial liability for the death of a female dairy buffalo in 2011 due to natural causes.

Exempted from the payment of P191,527.81, the book value of the carabao, was PCC Administrative Aide IV Haydee T. Sevilla.

The carabao, which was turned over to a farmer-caretaker under the “paiwi” (or the ‘paalaga’ system), died on April 27, 2011 due to “pasture bloat.”

Sevilla immediately reported the death of the carabao on April 27, 2011 to his team leader but it was only on Jan. 10, 2020 when he requested for relief from property accountability.

The COA reprimanded Sevilla over the delay of more than eight years in the filing of the request for relief, as it only made it "extremely difficult if not impossible to verify the alleged attendant circumstances that caused the death of the buffalo."

It said that that Sevilla was expected to have knowledge of pertinent rules and regulations relative to the safekeeping of government properties, and he should have required the farmer-recipient to comply with her obligation under the Kasunduan (agreement) to submit all documents relative to the death of the buffalo.

In failing to do so, Sevilla failed to diligently prove his worthiness for relief from property accountability, it also said.

However, the COA said that “requiring him (Sevilla) to pay for the amount of the buffalo is highly inequitable considering his meager income."

At the same time, the COA pointed out: “It was not shown from the records of the case that there was negligence on his part that resulted in the death of the buffalo. Rather, the death of the buffalo was due to natural causes."

The eight-page decision was signed by COA Chairperson Gamaliel A. Cordoba and Commissioners Roland Cafe Pondoc and Mario G. Lipana.