Duterte orders Calida to write COA on PRC audit

THE government is now poised to start auditing the finances of Philippine Red Cross (PRC), on orders of President Duterte, who the past two weeks has railed against the Senate investigation on his Cabinet aides led by Blue Ribbon chairman Richard J. Gordon, concurrent PRC chief.

This, after Duterte ordered Solicitor General (Solgen) Jose Calida to coordinate with the Commission on Audit (COA) to start scrutinizing the PRC’S utilization of public funds, which it received in previous years.

He said the audit is necessary because PRC allegedly failed to comply with its mandate, under Republic Act No. 10072 or the Philippine Red Cross Act of 2009, to submit its financial reports to the government.

“What I am waiting for—the next step would really be the letter to be delivered to the COA by Solicitor General Calida regarding my request to audit the Red Cross,” Duterte said during his public address last Wednesday.

The President then devoted time in his public address to attack Gordon, who has said the Senate cannot be stopped from doing its constitutional duty as a coequal branch.

Presidential spokesman Harry Roque explained Duterte gave the instruction to Calida since he serves as the legal counsel of the government.

He said they are confident COA will adhere to the request of Duterte as part of its constitutional mandate to safeguard public funds.

COA Chairman Michael Aguinaldo earlier clarified they could only audit government payments to humanitarian organizations such as PRC.

Duterte earlier said he wants PRC to be audited after its chairman Gordon continued to lead the Blue Ribbon investigation of questioned procurement of the Procurement Service of the Department of Budget and Management (PS-DBM) of medical supplies last year.

Duterte insisted there were no overpricing and ghost deliveries over the transaction of PS-DBM with Pharmally Pharmaceutical Corporation, a low capital firm that bagged over P8 billion in PS-DBM contracts despite its lack of track record. Pharmally “borrowed” funds from Duterte’s friend and former economic adviser, Michael Yang, to cover the deliveries of supplies.

Irked by Gordon’s handling of the Senate probe on the issue, Duterte accused the lawmaker of turning PRC as a “milking cow” to finance his political plans.