COA orders special audit of BARMM's payments worth P2.2B for learning materials

The Commission on Audit (COA) has ordered a special audit of the P2.2 billion worth of disbursements for education materials by the Bangsamoro Autonomous Region in Muslim Mindanao (BARMM).

This was according to a copy of the COA letter addressed to BARMM Chief Minister Abdulraof Macacua, ordering a special audit of BARMM's payments for learning materials. 

GMA News Online contacted COA to verify the document and is awaiting its reply.

The BARMM government on Wednesday confirmed receipt of the COA letter and said it would ''fully cooperate and provide assistance throughout the entire audit process.''

"The Bangsamoro Government assures the public that we take these matters seriously, and we will continue to act with diligence, fairness, and in the best interest of the Bangsamoro,'' it added.

In the letter, COA Chairperson Gamaliel Cordoba said the commission conducted an initial review of the payments following the filing of two complaints against Minister Mohagher Iqbal of the Ministry of Basic, Higher and Technical Education (MBHTE).

"Following the initial review by the relevant COA offices, the complaints merit the conduct of a special audit,” Cordoba said in his August 11, 2025 letter to Macacua.

The first complaint involved the P1.77 billion payment made in a single day through the issuance of checks to individual personnel, including the cashier, purportedly for learners' and teachers' kits.

The second complaint had to do with the P449-million payment to a single supplier under allegedly questionable circumstances.

Cordoba said COA is in the process of constituting a team to examine the transactions.

“We respectfully request your assistance for the audit team for the entire duration of the audit. We shall coordinate with your office on this matter,” he said.

The MBHTE has the biggest share in the BARMM budget at over P36 billion, or a third of the regional government's budget. —LDF/KG/VBL, GMA Integrated News