The Provincial Government of Oriental Mindoro is under mounting pressure to address serious procurement irregularities in flood control projects that have remained unresolved for seven years, according to a COA report obtained by Mindoro Today.

An audit finding from 2017, designated as “2017-011-LDRRMF”, identified inconsistencies in bidding documents for flood control projects worth P13.4 million pesos.

The projects were funded through the Local Disaster Risk Reduction and Management Fund and were found to violate Republic Act No. 9184, known as the Government Procurement Act.

Despite the passage of seven years, the audit finding remains marked as “NOT IMPLEMENTED” as of August 16, 2024, according to COA’s Action Plan and Status of Implementation report covering Calendar Year 2016.

The Provincial Legal Officer, who also serves as Chairman of the Bids and Awards Committee, outlined obstacles in addressing the audit findings in a letter to the Commission on Audit dated July 9, 2020.

The official cited a lack of proper document handovers and the absence of comprehensive status reports on audit observation memorandums to the current committee and its secretariat.

The situation was further complicated by the retirement of the former Bids and Awards Committee Secretariat Head, who could no longer be compelled to respond to the audit observations.

Provincial Accountant Althea F. Agutaya reinforced the urgency of the matter in an July 8, 2020 letter, reminding the committee about outstanding responses to audit observation memorandums that were classified as either “not implemented,” having “no action taken,” or requiring pending documentation.

The Commission on Audit’s original recommendations included several specific requirements.

The Bids and Awards Committee Secretariat and Chairman were directed to provide satisfactory explanations for the identified lapses in procurement procedures.

Officials were also required to submit official receipts for the purchase of bid documents to verify proper procurement protocols.

COA has called for full compliance with Philippine Government Electronic Procurement System (PhilGEPS) posting requirements, specifically for the Notice of Award, Notice to Proceed, and Contract documentation – essential transparency measures in public procurement.

For major infrastructure projects exceeding P5 million pesos in approved budget, the audit recommended mandatory pre-procurement conferences to ensure proper oversight and planning.

COA also stressed the importance of public accountability, requiring that project acceptance dates be clearly indicated in Certificate of Acceptance documents and that project signboards include target completion dates and other essential details to keep the public informed.