COA: Dante Ang failed to account for travel expenses

Government auditors found that Dante Ang, controversial former personal publicist of President Arroyo, failed to properly account for cash advances for undocumented travels in his capacity as chairman of the Commission on Filipinos Overseas (CFO). The Commission on Audit (COA) reported that Ang was unable to show sufficient documentation for the balances of his trips last year to Germany and Rome, Seoul in South Korea and Hong Kong. COA found in its investigation that Ang only accounted for P158,938.65 of some P224,478.54 unliquidated cash advances. State auditors also questioned the validity of the Hong Kong trip, noting that Ang failed to provide travel authority documents, an itinerary and an invitation letter from the company that supposedly sponsored his visit. A travel authority is supposed to carry the approval from the Office of the President. Ang also failed to submit an accomplishment report, which is in violation of Executive Orders 248 and 298. His liquidation report for the South Korea visit, meanwhile, purportedly lacked supporting documents such as certificates of travel completed and airline tickets. State officials are mandated to liquidate cash advances from foreign trips no later than 60 days upon their return to the Philippines. Advances for local trips, meanwhile, should be accounted for within 30 days. Meanwhile, the COA also found that Ang failed to reimburse the government P89,697.61 for gasoline expenses last year on two of his private vehicles (plate numbers XSE 512 and XSE 518). "These vehicles were not registered as properties of the Commission on Filipinos Overseas or of any government agency but are private vehicles of the CFO Chairman," the COA report said. "Further review of the Report of Disbursements/Payroll for Representation and Transportation Allowance disclosed that the CFO Chairman received his monthly transportation allowance of P7,500.00," it added. Ang is the publisher of the Manila Times newspaper. He bought the national daily from businessman Mark Jimenez, a known ally of former President Joseph Estrada. He also served as chairman of the board of the government-sequestered television station IBC-13 and was also a board member of APO-NEDA, a government printing institution.-GMANews.TV