Deficient STL: Gross sales at P707.54 million but…
Significant "deficiencies" were noted by the Commission on Audit (COA) on the current operations of the Small Town Lottery (STL).
Run by the Philippine Charity Sweepstakes Office (PCSO), government auditors want changes and adjustments. This as it reminded the PCSO, "STL is meant to generate more funds to provide greater help to the local projects and aims to eradicate jueteng, masiao, and other similar number games that are rampant in the countryside."
In a report, The News Today (TNT) gathered that STL projects examined by COA failed to maintain proper books and records of accounts with transactions similarly with inadequate documentation.
Problems too on bet slips and lottery tickets issued to bettors that COA wants "prenumbered/serially numbered" and not carbonized. Such alongside a more efficient validation of ticket sales.
The current system, COA said, leaves "no audit trail to validate the accuracy and reliability of the reported gross sales amounting to P707.54 million and other financial transactions regarding STL."
"The remittances of the PCSO shares depend on the monthly summary of sales submitted by the STL operators wherein the daily sales were listed and summarized. However, there was no document to support the reported sales," the report and observation further went. "The STL bet collections were not properly receipted or acknowledged by the operators upon remittance by the Sales agents/supervisors hence the reported sales may not be reliable."
"The accuracy and integrity of the 7.5% share of the Charity Fund and 2% printing cost as Authority Fee to PCSO amounting to P47.76 million and P12.74 million respectively could not be ascertained due to inadequate documentation and non-maintenance of proper books and records of accounts," COA added.
Meantime, payment of draw allowances to provincial district office personnel was deemed illegal. COA wrote that the practice is inconsistent with a government-drawn provision.
And questions too on the procurement of draw equipment and accessories by the PCSO Central Office that COA said were not in accordance with STL projects.