CoA flags veterans’ agency for unliquidated P10.81-M aid to organizations

STATE AUDITORS found that the Veterans Federation of the Philippines (VFP) granted P10.81 million worth of financial assistance to various veterans’ organizations that remain unliquidated or lack reporting requirements.

In its 2020 audit report, the Commission on Audit (CoA) said that P7.8 million remain unliquidated while P2.38 million were liquidated to 50 district organizations but without submission of reports to auditors as of Dec. 31.

The VFP executive board approved various resolutions in 2020 to provide P10.81 million worth of financial assistance to 10 charters, 21 affiliates, and 183 district veterans organizations for pandemic relief.

“All organizations are granted a total of P50,000 each for the purpose of providing their respective members basic needs such as canned goods, Vitamin C, alcohol, soap... to help them manage their situation during the enhanced community quarantine period,” the CoA said.

The CoA said that majority of the aid were granted from April to July 2020, meaning that these should be liquidated by the end of the year.

However, it found that the implementing rules of the fund liquidation did not provide a specific period or format of documents for submission. Neither was there a team tasked for monitoring.

Auditors also found that the release of financial assistance to veterans’ organizations did not have any written acknowledgement receipts from authorized groups attached to the disbursement vouchers.

“In absence of said supporting document, the Audit team could not validate whether the financial assistance... was indeed received by the authorized recipients,” they said.

The CoA recommended that the VFP’s accounting and operations teams require the recipients to immediately submit acknowledgement receipts and liquidation reports.

It also asked that the agency review and revise its implementing guidelines to include clear provisions on liquidation reports.

In an audit comment, the VFP said that it is in the process of following up on liquidation documents and revising the rules for board approval. — Russell Louis C. Ku