The Commission on Audit (COA) has set aside the notice of disallowance (ND) it earlier issued against the municipality of Sablayan, Occidental Mindoro for the P3.05 million that was “erroneously described” as intelligence and confidential funds for 2010.

In a decision, the COA granted the appeal of then Sablayan mayor Godofredo B. Mintu who told the audit commission that there was no comparative computation that would show that the town’s confidential and intelligence funds of P1.5 million was used.

In issuing the ND, the COA initially found that the total appropriations of the municipality for intelligence and confidential funds exceeded by P2,511,000 the ceiling set under Department of Interior and Local Government (DILG) Memorandum Circular (MC) Nos. 99-65 dated April 23, 1999 and MC No. 99-100 dated June 15, 1999.

Also, the COA’s findings noted that the intelligence and confidential expenditures were charged directly to the expense account, in violation of COA Circular No. 2003-003 dated July 30, 2003.

In granting Mintu’s appeal, the COA said: "The municipality did not actually incur expenses chargeable to intelligence and confidential funds. What was expended was the allocation for Public Safety Peace and Order Program (PSPOP) and not the intelligence and confidential fund. Hence, there was no such incurrence of expenses in excess of the allowable limit of intelligence and confidential fund allocation to speak of.”

It also said that the total amount disbursed for the project was P3,050,000, which was well within the municipality's P3,500,000 PSPOP appropriation.

"There was merely an erroneous description of the transaction in the respective disbursement vouchers, which led the auditor concerned to believe that a violation of said circular was committed," it added.

The 10-page decision was signed by Chairperson Gamaliel A. Cordoba and Commissioners Roland Cafe Pondoc and Mario G. Lipana.