COA also flags OVP relief ops involving P168 million
On top of the issues raised in her impeachment trial over the use of confidential funds, more questions may be forthcoming, this time over the disaster relief operations attributed to the office of Vice President Sara Duterte.
The Commission on Audit (COA) noted either deficiencies or inconsistencies in the documentation of the relief efforts conducted by the Office of the Vice President (OVP) last year. In all, the flagged activities involved almost P168 million in public funds.
The findings were contained in the 273-page COA report on the 2025 Disaster Risk Reduction and Management Fund, which was submitted Aug. 28 to Defense Secretary Gilberto Teodoro Jr., the concurrent chair of the National Disaster Risk Reduction and Management Council.
According to the audit report, inconsistencies were observed between the situational reports (sitreps) from the agencies or local government units (LGUs) concerned and the OVP’s own sitreps, involving a total amount of P19.67 million.
State auditors also noted deviations from approved mission orders during actual operations worth P39 million, as well as the issuance of “open-ended” mission orders amounting to P84.1 million.
‘Weakened controls’
The COA report also cited deficiencies in the documentation of beneficiaries and distribution records. Also flagged were instances of incomplete or nonsubmission of required documents involving funds worth P25.2 million.
“These deficiencies reduced assurance on the completeness, reliability, and verifiability of relief distribution records and weakened controls over relief operations,” the COA report said.
There were discrepancies between the sitreps of LGUs and that of the OVP regarding the number of calamity-affected families, which was used as a basis for the distribution of relief goods, it added.
This gap, the COA said, “diminished” the reliability of sitreps which are also used to guide the planning of relief operations and the issuance of mission orders.
The state auditors also noted that 24 relief operations with total funding of about P39 million deviated from the approved mission orders without documented approval.
According to the COA, the OVP cited operational adjustments due to changing field conditions as reason for the deviation. The adjustments were said to be due to changes in schedules, distribution locations, quantity of relief items, and the amount of rice distributed.
But the report said: “The absence of documented approvals weakened assurance that the changes were properly authorized and supported.”
Eight mission orders pertaining to the distribution of relief goods worth P84,118,147.06 did not specify the target beneficiaries and merely directed the turnover of the goods to the affected or displaced families.
Lost records due to ‘Kristine’
Again quoting the OVP’s explanation, the COA said Duterte’s staff needed “operational flexibility during emergencies.”
OVP relief operations involving 33,980 beneficiaries and goods amounting to about P25.3 million lacked preoperation documents, such as sitreps, mission orders, and verified master lists, the auditors further noted.
In one instance, the required relief distribution sheet was unavailable “due to records reportedly lost during Typhoon “Kristine” (international name: Trami) and was replaced with explanatory and certification documents.”
