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Sunday, April 25, 2004
Cebu City Hall tightens controls
By Gingging A. Campaņa
* Salaries now released through ATMs, so pay officers won't be tempted to hang on to large amounts of cash or to lend these
* But City Hall is still waiting for public officials to account for P24.2 million in cash advances and NGOs, agencies for P11.5M in aid
CEBU CITY -- With the salaries now released through the automated teller machines (ATMs) and the strict implementation of accounting and audit rules, Cebu City Hall is hoping that pay officers can no longer run away with millions in government funds.
"Had the City Accounting Office really done its job in the past, pay officers could not have availed themselves of cash advances in multi-millions of pesos and ran away with it," said City Administrator Juan Saul Montecillo.
But with City Accountant Edna Jaca and her pre-audit staff's strictness in examining vouchers and request for cash advances, Montecillo said City Hall now has fully equipped itself with control measures in releasing funds to disbursing officers.
"In fact, strict accounting is the common source of complaints from our suppliers whose checks for payments are always delayed. The delay is mainly a result of the careful pre-audit on the vouchers by the audit division," Montecillo said.
Before 1998, City Hall used to allow pay officers to get large cash advances for the salaries of employees to be released over the counters of the cash division.
Pay officers were allowed to keep a lot of cash or unclaimed salaries in their cubicles without submitting these to a regular cash count or audit, or depositing these in a common treasury vault at the end of the day.
These had tempted them to use the money for personal purposes, and worse, according to previous inquiries, use the funds in lending activities.
But after the cash scam involving Rosalina Badana, Cleofe Delute and Luz Gonzales, the City Government had decided to release the salaries of its workers through ATMs.
"This way, the paymasters do not hold large amounts," Montecillo said.
Delute was convicted last Friday of embezzling more than P11 million in City Hall funds from 1995 to 1998. She was meted a jail term of 18 to 40 years.
Badana and Gonzales remain at large.
Nowadays, pay officers are allowed to avail themselves of cash advances only for honorariums or allowances for the attendance of members to certain committees, boards and commissions.
Other accountable officials, like Mayor Tomas Osmeņa, Vice Mayor Michael Rama, councilors and department heads and bonded employees, are allowed to get cash advances for their travel expenses.
These are to be settled by them or their staff by submitting the liquidation report supported with the receipts, plane or boat tickets and other documents that prove the money was spent for official purposes.
"Some officials, however, fail to liquidate their cash advances either because they misplaced or lost their receipts. Some new employees also are not yet familiar with the government auditing procedures that they just take these things for granted," Montecillo said.
City Hall also extended financial assistance to accredited people's organizations and nongovernment organizations (NGOs) for their projects in various communities, subject to liquidation.
As of March 2004, unliquidated cash advances of NGOs, national agencies and other government-owned and controlled corporations have reached P11.54 million.
Most of them are already processing their liquidation with the City Accounting Office.
Unless they settle their previous financial help, they will not be granted a new financial assistance from City Hall.
Total unliquidated cash advances for individuals have reached P24.21 million, including the funds embezzled by Gonzales, Delute and Badana.
In 1999, a year after the cash advance mess was uncovered, then city administrator Danilo Almendras and the officials from the Bureau of Local Government Finance detailed to City Hall instituted measures by recommending treasury bonds for supply officers and other persons responsible for government funds and properties.
The 8th City Council then, upon the motion of Councilor Jocelyn Pesquera, pushed to activate the audit division at the accounting office, the internal control office and the regular submission of the trial balance sheets for evaluation.
The trial balance sheets that usually reflect the City's financial status, existing bank deposits, receivables, collectibles, loans and liabilities, as well as unliquidated cash advances of individuals are prepared by the accounting office.
(April 25, 2004 issue)
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