COA calls out Montano over ‘excessive’ trips, Tourism board over sponsorship deals

The Commission on Audit has called out Cesar Montano for his "excessive and extravagant" foreign travels — a total of 14 trips with a combined duration of three months with some involving business class flights — when he was still Tourism Promotions Board (TPB) Chief Operating Officer (COO).

The COA cited records showing Montano traveling abroad a total of 14 times in 2017, incurring expenses totaling P2.277 million.

The trips lasted a total of 91 days or a fourth of the entire year, which, the COA said, were deemed excessive and may have adverse repercussions on the management of the affairs of the government corporation.

Meanwhile, Montano's officer-in-charge Deputy Chief Operating Officer (DCOO) for International Promotions was found to have traveled 16 times for a much longer total of 113 days.

Montano traveled to attend various events together with his executive assistant and private secretary for 10 and 11 foreign travels, respectively.

For these travels, the TPB incurred the additional expenses of P2.995 million for the purpose of assisting Montano in his foreign travels, which is deemed "excessive and unnecessary."

The COA said while the trips of the TPB — an attached agency of the Department of Tourism — was part of their mandate to market Philippine tourism abroad, "as an austerity measure and in consonance with Section 50 of Republic Act No. 9593, the TPB should find ways to minimize the cost and optimize the performance of duties of its officers and employees for an effective and efficient organization."

The COA also noted that business class air tickets amounting to P594,000 were purchased on Montano's two foreign trips using TPB funds, in violation of Section 10 of Executive Order 248 as amended by Section 7 of EO 298, which requires government officials to travel in economy class.

The COA blamed the TPB for not having written guidelines or policy on who should handles foreign-based tasks, exposing the board to the risk of incurrence of unnecessary travel expenses, preferential biases and conflict of interests such that non-marketing and promotions personnel were deployed to undertake marketing assignments abroad.

Montano later resigned after being dragged into the TPB's P80-million funding for the Buhay Carinderia culinary tourism project. Montano said it was former Tourism Secretary Wanda Teo who introduced him to the proponent of the Buhay Carinderia campaign.

GMA News Online is still trying to contact Montano for his comment on the COA report.

President Rodrigo Duterte has in the past fired several officials over excessive foreign trips, including Presidential Commission for the Urban Poor chair Terry Ridon in December 2017 and Maritime Industry Authority (MARINA) administrator Marcial Amaro III in January 2018.

Duterte later signed an executive order that limits the travels of government officials.

Direct contracting

Apart from his foreign trips, Montano was also called out by the COA for failing to approve a Bids and Awards Committee (BAC) resolution in 2017 recommending the awarding of a contract for the services of entertainers hired to perform for the Second Phase of the DOT's Intramuros Revival Project.

Instead, Montano entered into a negotiated contract with the losing bidder representing the entertainers, contrary to Section 41 of RA 9184. The entertainers hired by TPB were also not Philippine Government Electronic Procurement System (Philgeps) registered, contrary to Section 8.5.1 and Section IV (G) Annex H of the same law.

In its defense, the TPB management said the entertainers tapped were more capable of providing a world class service instead of the winning bidder recommended by the BAC. It also said the entertainers no longer needed to be Philgeps registrants since the managing company representing them already is.

The COA, however, insisted that Montano should have indicated in his resolution why he did not approve the BAC's recommendation, even as the COA said the entertainers should still have been registered because they were hired under direct contracting.

Sponsorships, cash advances

In its report, the COA also found the TPB's various cash advances amounting to P5.033 million that remained outstanding as of December 31, 2017

In January 2017, the TPB, without approval from the Board of Directors, also entered into an agreement with a company to sponsor a concert festival in Pasay City by investing P11.2 million.

The validity or regularity of how the fund was used, however, could not be determined because the company failed to submit the required liquidation report to the TPB, the event's co-presenter.

Aside from convert sponsorpships, the TPB was also called out for granting financial sponsorships amounting to P7 million to various organizations, local government units, and private corporations for events in 2017 not related with promoting Philippine tourism.

With no set of guidelines for granting sponsorships, the TPB also ended up financially supporting proponents of events which are either unevaluated or has a low capacity to finance events, even if they are related to Philippine tourism.

The COA cited a 2017 event by the Philippine Exhibits and Theme Parks Corporation (PETCO), in which the TPB gave a financial sponsorship worthP58.169 million.

In October 2016, PETCO informed then Tourism Secretary Teo that they would organize exhibitions at the Intramuros in line with the Intramuros Revival Project of the DOT.

Teo would later issue a memorandum directing her subordinates to extend full support for the implementation of the Intramuros Revival Project that ran from  December 2016 until January 2017.

The COA later found out that the financial assistance was granted to proponents whose proposal appear to be without evaluation and to proponent that obtained low evaluation rating.

Also, sponsorships and financial assistance were granted in excess of the requested amount of the proponent and/or amount recommended by the project officer (PO), the COA found out.

Teo would later resign amid controversy caused by the airing of tourism campaign advertisements in the television show of her brothers on state-run Philippine Television Network Inc. (PTV).

In its defense, the TPB management said the excess "was due to the request of TPB for additional mileage of product/company logo displayed/printed on delegate’s kits."

The management also said there was no agreement that TPB will commission from the fees implemented by the proponent to the participants, buyers or sellers, the sponsorship is solely for the assistance to be granted of said project.

The COA reminded the TPB to "prudently manage government funds and avoid granting financial sponsorship/assistance to proponents which expenses are recoverable from the income of the event/project."

Those who failed to liquidate and submit supporting documents for the fund granted should be required to refund, the COA said.

Evaluation should include estimated income to be derived from the project, the equitable shares of both the proponent and the government from such revenues to properly estimate the reasonable amount for the FA, it added.

The COA also said the regularity and validity of payments made to Denstu Philippines, Inc. (DPI) related its advertising services contract in 2014 amounting to P873.269 million could not be ascertained due to a lack of documents. — MDM, GMA News