Thursday, January 30, 2014

Manila Standfard Today | Billions malversed — Audit chief



By Macon Ramos-Araneta | Jan. 31, 2014 at 12:01am

BILLIONS OF  cash advances dating back  to 10 or 15 years ago have remained unliquidated until today,  Audit chairman Maria Grace Pulido- Tan said on Thursday.






Revelations. Audit chairman Maria Gracia Pulido Tan (right) and SEC chief Teresita Herbosa reveal that billions in state funds remain unsettled or wasted on fraud at the resumption of the Senate blue ribbon probe of the pork barrel scam. Left panel shows senators Edgardo Juan Angara, TG Guingona and Paulo Benigno Aquino taking their turns to ask questions. EY ACASIO


One agency alone could have piled up around P1 billion in unliquidated cash advances, Tan said at yesterday’s Senate Blue Ribbon hearing   on the alleged  pork barrel scam.

Tan did not name the agencies that have yet to settle their fund releases. She said that under the law, the money would be presumed to be “malversed” since the agencies failed to liquidate on time and on demand.
She was replying to a question posed by Senator Paulo Benigno Aquino, presidential cousin, on cash advances by government corporations.

“ How long have  they not been liquidated?”   Aquino asked Tan.
“Sir, 10 years or 15 years,” replied Tan.

“Fifteen years and they’re not yet paid? And you’re putting together this list and you will file criminal charges against these officials whether they’re currently there or they’re out of office?” further questioned the Liberal Party senator.          

When Aquino asked Tan when do they plan to file the charges, she said they are giving those agencies involved two months to comply with the liquidation requirements.

Some of the unexplained cash releases, she said, actually went to non-government organizations (NGOs).
Aquino  sought  a  review of the total amount involved and  for how long these amount have not been liquidated.

Blue Ribbon committee chairman Senator Teofisto Guingona described as “revealing” Tan’s disclosure on  the unliquidated  funds.

Tan told the senate hearing that when she came to know about the unliquidated cash advances   two years ago,  she caused the issuance of final demand letter to all concerned  government agencies.

“We told them to do something about it and even published that in the newspaper,” she told the senators.
She said there is a provision of criminal law that when somebody is given a cash advance and he was not able to liquidate it within the prescribed period and within demand, “there is already a presumption in law that that money was malversed.”

She said the COA has the list of individuals and organizations that have not liquidated.

She said COA was going through documents so that  appropriate charges could be filed against those responsible. The COA Fraud Audit and Investigation Office will file these cases after the lapse of two months. 

In the same hearing, SEC chairman Teresita Herbosa had complained that the lack of resources had  prevented them to immediately detect  “fraud” in   the registration of  alleged bogus NGOs   with links to pork barrel scam suspect  Janet  Lim-Napoles.

Napoles remains in jail at the Fort Sto. Domingo in Sta. Rosa, Laguna, after being charged with plunder before the Office of the Ombudsman.

Herbosa said SEC  looked into the NGOs that were used as conduits of lawmakers’ Priority Development Assistance Fund  when the P10-billion pork barrel scandal broke  out.

She said they only rely on the documents submitted to them.

Herbosa said, they could still detect “certain batches of fraud” simply based on the application being submitted to their office.

Herbosa said  the corporate and governance and finance department has only eight examiners assigned to process 10,000 active foundations.

She said   one examiner handles  as many as 200 corporations when the ideal ratio is at least  54 processors  instead of  eight.





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