COMMISSION on Audit (COA)-Western Visayas State Auditor III Sheila Velmonte Portal confirmed that they have not issued any Audit Observation Memorandum (AOM) involving reforestation projects in Bacolod.

This, after Secretary to the Mayor Vicente Petierre III sought from the office of COA information if indeed the City of Bacolod spent the alleged amount of P101 million for reforestation project, after Sarah Esguerra sought clarification from city officials on the money being used on a particular expense, citing pages 151-152 of the Environment Sector which states that "no plan for forest management exists because there is no forest area within the City of Bacolod."

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Petierre also asked the COA if there was an AOM and notice of disallowance for year 2005-2006 on the part of Bacolod involving reforestation expenses/projects.

Petierre said they do not want to mislead the public, much less use the COA report for propaganda.

“However, the manner of Esguerra interpreting the alleged AAR made it appear that the City of Bacolod had indeed spent the said amount for reforestation projects,” he said.

In the letter of Velmonte-Portal addressed to Petierre dated November 6, 2009, she said City Accountant Eduardo Ravena is the best person to know the figures in the financial statements and the authority with regards to the reforestation spending of the city in 2005-2006.

“We have not issued any AOM involving reforestation projects as can be observed in the AAR for 2005-2006 which your office was given a copy. The reforestation was not included among our audit thrust for the mentioned calendar years,” Velmonte-Portal added.

Recently, lawyer Goldwyn Nifras, Office of Agriculture head, clarified that based on documents from the City Accounting Office, there exists an account but for "public account wherein if the city has reforestation project or public infrastructures, this is where the budget should be entered and the budget for such projects will be sourced."

Nifras said records revealed that in 2005 and 2006, there were projects undertaken by the city under the account for "public infrastructure/reforestations projects" as well as the record for payments of said projects, "but clearly, it did not show that there was a reforestation project undertaken by the city."

He noted that based on records, the city spent for such projects as roads, highways and bridges, wells, reservoirs, pump stations and conduits, irrigation, canals and laterals, flood controls, waterways, aqua ducts, seawalls and other public infrastructures, stressing that nowhere in the account was it revealed that the city had reforestation projects.