Press Release
October 18, 2007

ROXAS TO PALACE: COME CLEAN ON USE OF PUBLIC FUNDS

Senator Mar Roxas said Malacañang must come clean regarding the Commission on Audit's findings of unliquidated and unaccounted funds in 2006 totaling hundreds of millions of pesos.

"I acknowledge humanitarian use of such funds under the law, but I urge transparency to preclude politically-motivated spending," Roxas said.

The Senator said the CoA report further placed doubts on the way the Palace spent money, coming after allegations of payoffs to local government officials.

"If the Palace had all the good intentions in using these funds, it should not hesitate to publish regular reports of the President's direct social interventions, including the reasons and the beneficiaries thereof," Roxas said.

Until such things are explained, the Senator said the public's mistrust of the administration will remain.

"The seeming cloak of secrecy raises suspicions of slush money being paid out in the guise of humanitarian spending," he said.

Records show that in 2006, the Office of the President had P615.3 million in unliquidated cash advances, for which the commission recommended that concerned officers be compelled to liquidate the amount, to refrain from granting more of these, and to be sanctioned.

Loans granted to the President's Social Fund in 2003 and January 2004 totaling P269.5 million were not booked up and lacked sufficient documents to support these. Transfers of funds to government agencies and other nongovernment organizations totaling P112.1 million were improperly recorded under the account Due from NGAs (National Government Agencies).

Propery, Plant and Equipment with a total value of P949.9 million had not been provided with depreciation, thus understating the accumulated depreciation and depreciation expense accounts. Dormant accounts totaled P293.9 million as of December 31, 2006, prompting the CoA to recommend the writing off of these. In addition, various other amounts were overstated or understated, reflecting discrepancies in the millions of pesos.

Roxas said such findings make it all the more desirable to set a more formulaic approach for the spending of government offices and agencies. He cited Republic Act No. 7880, The Fair and Equitable Access to Education Act which he authored, providing a system for release of education funds according to student population in a district, thereby removing politicking in spending for the people's education.

"A similar mechanism can be placed for other offices, whereby significantly less funds are allocated at the whim of those in influence," Roxas said.

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