Excessive phone bills, unliquidated CAs, P14M mess in Sta. Barbara
If government auditors faced off with nearly P2 million in food expense and catering services in the Municipality of Estancia, the state of the financial coffers of the Municipality of Sta. Barbara has phone bills to match said adverse finding.
Albeit in lesser amount, the audit team sent by the Commission on Audit (COA) called the attention of Sta. Barbara Mayor Isabelo Maquino on phone bills incurred by the municipality. Records evaluated and validated showed a minimum of P20,000 per month for these phone bills with the 7-month period examined by the Commission showing telephone expenses of P143,214.60.
Worse yet, payments were made minus any certification from either the mayor or the vice mayor stating that such calls were official in nature.
As such the COA wrote, "The Municipal Mayor should ensure proper controls so that long distance calls in the landline telephones shall be limited to urgent and absolutely necessary business of the Municipality."
And for Sta. Barbara to adopt economical measures, get a trunk line or main telephone connection between exchanges among different offices, the COA further noted.
This, as over P14 million of the town's collections were discovered by the audit team to have not been deposited at the time of audit "thus exposing the cash to risk of improper use or possible loss."
The undeposited collection is a clear violation of the government's accounting system that has since caused the COA to call the attention of the town executives.
"Although Management advised Municipal Treasurer and designated liquidating officer to deposit their collections promptly, records showed that there was a slow movement of deposits made," the report as contained in the 2005 Annual Audit Report went.
The News Today learned that following said discovery the Commission formed a special audit team to effect a cash examination of Sta. Barbara's cash in vault, cash on hand. Said special audit continues to date.
There is also nearly a million in unliquidated cash advances from the town's officials. The unsettled accountability was due to travels, overpayment of salaries, miscellaneous expense and the Aliwan Festival expenses.
"The accountable municipal officials/employees concerned should liquidate immediately their cash advances otherwise the Municipal Accountant should delete the name of the official or employee from subsequent payrolls until such time that the cash advance has been fully liquidated," the COA stated.