Wednesday, August 06, 2008 Lapu officials back P2.2M expense
THE disbursement of some P2.26 million in Association of Barangay Councils (ABC) funds in Lapu-Lapu City went through legal processes and could therefore not be considered a misuse, contrary to what state auditors have noted.
Two City Hall officials made this argument after the Commission on Audit (COA) said the P2.26 million of the ABC was not spent for its intended purpose and not within the group’s function.
As for City Councilor Eduardo Cuizon, the former ABC chief who reportedly failed to liquidate P265,772.03 of the P1.9 million the group received from the City, he said he has completed his liquidation report but just wasn’t able to submit it on time.
Busy
Cuizon said he was unable to do so because of the May election campaign and July plebiscite for Lapu-Lapu’s bid to become a highly urbanized city.
“I swear to God, every single cent of that fund was properly accounted (for)…Never that I had used them for my personal benefits…not even a single cent,” he told Sun Star Cebu.
Findings
State auditors found that from 2006 to October 2007, the ABC received P2.5 million in financial aid from the City. But COA learned that from June 26, 2006 to Oct. 1, 2007, some P2.26 million was spent for disbursements not part of the fund’s intended purpose.
Instead, it was used to pay for honoraria and allowances of barangay captains, and for the Christmas party and other activities, when it was for development projects in each of the 30 barangays.
Incumbent ABC president Leo Mercado, in a separate interview, gave the same observation.
He said it could not be considered a misuse of funds because aside from the approval of the board, ABC treasurer Paz Radaza, wife of Mayor Arturo Radaza and Mactan barangay captain, is very strict in policy implementation.
Unliquidated
The COA report said that during Cuizon’s incumbency, the ABC received P1.9 million in aid, but he was unable to liquidate a balance of P240,068.75. Expenses for the league’s Christmas party in 2006 amounted to P250,000, but Cuizon liquidated only P224,256, leaving a balance of P25,703.
Cuizon said he already submitted his liquidation report for the P240,068 balance, while receipts and other records for the P25,703 balance from the Christmas party expenses are currently kept by his staff and are ready for submission.
“I can look straight at anyone’s eye and tell him there was nothing irregular about it,” he said. (AIV)
