THE Commission on Audit (COA) questioned the granting of more than P14-million worth of honoraria to chairperson, members and secretaries of 38 different committees, councils, boards or commissions by the Cebu City Government.
The move was tantamount to double compensation, it said.
The finding was one of the 55 deficiencies that COA discovered when it scrutinized the City’s transactions and operations in 2015.
In an annual audit report, the state auditors said the recipients each received P1,000 for every meeting they attended, while the staff of the secretariat also received an honorarium of P500 each.
COA said the programs or functions of these bodies are “not special projects” that have a specific time frame to accomplish, prompting them to suspend the payment of the honorarium.
Recipients
“These are part of the regular functions of the City, which are continuously implemented, monitored, evaluated and enhanced. Hence, the payment (of the honorarium) is tantamount to additional compensation or double compensation,” the audit report stated.
Among those who were granted honoraria were members of the Land Management Council (P591,000), Local Small and Medium Enterprises Development Council of Cebu City (P649,500), Cebu City Tripartite Industrial Peace Council (P637,500), Cebu City Cooperative Development Council (P624,500), Local Housing Board (P610,000), Garbo Asenso Sumbanan Alyansa (P526,500), Cebu City Anti-Indecency Board (P518,500), Cebu City Zoning Board (P498,000), Cebu City Youth Development Commission (P423,000), Joint Venture Selection Committee (P416,000) and the parks and playgrounds commission (P255,000).
Also granted honoraria were members of the City’s Disaster Risk Reduction and Management Council (P394,000), the Coastline Management Board (P388,000), the sports commission (P361,000), scholarship committee (P335,000), anti-mendicancy board (P326,000), traffic operations management board (P324,550), senior citizen’s council (P320,000), STD/HIV aids council (P260,000), rivers management council (P240,500), tourism commission (P98,000), local finance committee (P94,000), Bantay Dagat Commission (P222,500) and Solid Waste Management Board (P170,500), among many others.
According to COA, the payment of the honorarium is not in line with the Civil Service Commission rules, Department of Budget and Management circulars and provisions of the Local Government, which prohibit elective or appointive local officials or employees from receiving additional, double or indirect compensation.
Special projects
An honorarium, they said, can only be given on special projects, be it locally-funded or foreign-assisted, where the job is not a regular or permanent function of the respective committees, councils, boards or commissions.
COA asked the City to explain and submit legal basis on the P14-million disbursement.
In a management comment, the City explained that the giving of the honorarium was based on City Ordinance (CO) 2287 that amended CO 1977, or the ordinance prescribing a uniform rate of honorarium in all commissions, officers, councils, committees or bodies created due to national laws or those created through local legislation.
“These enactments and issuances are effective and enforceable unless directly attacked in the courts of law,” the City said.