COA flags P74-M travel expenses of PDEA for lack of supporting docs

The Commission on Audit (COA) has questioned the P74-million spending of the Philippine Drug Enforcement Agency (PDEA) for its domestic travels due to its failure to submit complete supporting documents.

Based on its 2018 audit report, the COA said P51.83 million were unsupported with official receipts, while P22.45 million worth of liquidation reports had insufficient supporting documents.

"This situation is not in accordance with existing laws, rules and regulations and casted doubts on the validity, existence, occurrence and regularity of the claims," the COA said.

The P74 million is part of the total P110.8 million spent by PDEA for its local travels as of December 31, 2018, but state auditors said they had "difficulty in ascertaining the necessity of the transactions."

The COA cited Section 4 of the Government Auditing Code to remind the PDEA, saying government agencies are required to attach complete documents in disbursement vouchers and liquidation reports before making reimbursement claims.

It said supporting documents include an official travel order, duly approved itinerary of travel, transportation tickets, certificates of appearance and completed travel, and a certification from the head of the agency on the necessity of the trip.

The COA recommended for the PDEA to direct its accountant to ensure all vouchers and liquidation reports have complete supporting documents and submit the requirements on the P22.45-million transactions.

The PDEA cashier is likewise urged to submit the official receipts of the P51.83-million disbursement and told to refrain from issuing payments until documents from previous transactions are settled.

The PDEA management agreed to adhere to the audit recommendations, according to the COA. — MDM, GMA News