THE Cebu Provincial Government cited calamities, agency requests and ongoing coordination as reasons for the continued non-use of several completed provincial infrastructure projects flagged by the Commission on Audit (COA).
Provincial Administrator Joseph “Ace” Durano said on Tuesday, Dec. 16, 2025, the Cebu Provincial Skills Training Center in the City of Naga, completed in 2018, is now being used as a temporary school facility following a request from Mayor Valdemar Chiong after the Inayagan National High School was damaged by the magnitude 6.9 earthquake last Sept. 30.
Durano said the transfer to the training facility allowed the school’s more than 800 students to hold classes in one location, eliminating the need for shifting schedules previously implemented due to limited classroom space.
Durano said the Provincial Government is set to formalize the use of the facility.
Meanwhile, Durano said requests were made by national agencies for the use of the Bahay Pag-asa for Children in Conflict with the Law (CICL) in Naga, which was completed in 2020.
He said the Philippine Drug Enforcement Agency (PDEA) asked to use the facility as a rehabilitation center, while the Department of Social Welfare and Development sought to utilize it as a juvenile facility for CICL.
Durano said the PDEA’s request was prompted by the absence of a Provincial Government-run rehabilitation facility.
“Governor Pam is open to both options, which are now undergoing the process of determining which agency will use the facility,” Durano said.
“Whatever will be the decision on which agency will use it, it’s still the Provincial Government that will improve the facility,” he added.
For the Cebu Provincial Dormitory in Cebu City, completed in 2019, Durano said the Provincial Government considers it among its dormant properties and is set to discuss its utilization in a meeting scheduled later Tuesday afternoon.
Durano said Provincial Economic Enterprise Office head Paulo Uy is in charge of managing dormant assets. An Economic Enterprise Council meeting was scheduled to present an inventory of idle provincial properties so they can be productively used.
He said decisions on the use of the properties must be approved by the council, including whether funds are needed to improve the facilities or whether they should be leased out under specific terms of reference.
The COA, in its 2024 audit report, flagged three completed infrastructure projects of the Provincial Government for prolonged non-utilization despite a combined cost of P50.4 million.
The projects include the Cebu Provincial Skills Training Center Naga, completed at a cost of P16.33 million; Bahay Pag-asa completed at P8.69 million; and the Provincial Dormitory at a cost of P24.95 million.
COA said the facilities remained unused between five and seven years after completion, in violation of government regulations requiring the efficient use of public resources. During an ocular inspection in July 2024, auditors found all three buildings idle with signs of deterioration.
The facilities have already incurred depreciation of more than P8.4 million as of June 30, 2024, or roughly 20 percent of their construction costs.
COA directed provincial officials to explain the prolonged non-use of the projects or submit documents proving their turnover to National Government agencies, warning that the continued idling undermines project objectives and deprives intended beneficiaries of public services. / CDF