COA to City: Recover advance payments

The Commission onAudit (COA) has questioned the Cebu City government’s P3.9million advance payments that were not recovered from the five contractors, despite termination of the projects.

In the annual audit report, the COAnamed the contractors as EMArante/Armed Builders, Jegma Construction and Development Corporation, JO Builders, Keneto Contraks, Inc., and Roy Constructor.

“We recommend that the management demand immediate refund of mobilization fees given to contractors for aforementioned cancelled/terminated projects,” read a portion of the report.

Section 4.3 of the Revised Implementing Rules and Regulation of Republic Act 9184 stipulates that “the advance payment shall be repaid by the contractor by deducting 15 percent from his periodic progress payments a percentage equal to the percentage of the total contract price used for the advance payment.”

The P3.9 million advance payments to contractors were paid in 2015 and 2016 but were not recouped by the city as of December 2017.

Some of the projects that were cancelled or terminated were the improvement on the General Services Office; construction of concrete lined canal in Barangay Basak San Nicolas; road concreting with drainage system in Barangay Mambaling; and three school buildings at Don Vicente Memorial High School.

Other cancelled and terminated projects are renovation or repainting and re-roofing of the office of Department of Social Welfare and Services in Barangay Labangon and construction of drainage system at Duljo Integrated Neighborhood Association in barangay Duljo Fatima.

These projects were cancelled or terminated per verification of the status report submitted by the city’s Department of Engineering and Public Works.

The commission asked the city to require all contractors to refund the city’s payment.

“The failure of the city to recover the mobilization fee granted for the abovementioned projects deprived the city of the use of the said funds for other projects,” COA said.