COA faults DA as lack of food kills 52 goats
The Commission on Audit (COA) has called out the Department of Agriculture (DA) for “inadequate management oversight” after more than half of 101 goats procured for a goat production project died due to the lack of proper animal feed.
Based on COA’s annual audit report on the DA for 2024, the 52 goats with a book value of over P2.438 million died last year. The animals were part of the Anglo Nubian and Saanen Goat Production Project under the agriculture department’s Pangasinan Research and Experiment Center in Sual, Pangasinan (PREC).
The 52 were among 101 goats, composed of 68 Anglo-Nubian and 33 Saanen breeder goats. They died while under the custody of the DA’s designated accountable officer (AO), whom the COA said had filed 41 requests for relief from accountability.
“These losses had a total book value of P2,438,200.00,” state auditors said.
Necropsy findings
According to COA, necropsy reports confirmed that the animals died of various illnesses and diseases, with affidavits from the AO and farm staff saying the goats had shown signs of malnutrition and weakened immune systems, and were “unable to withstand environmental stress and natural calamities.”
State auditors found other issues surrounding the project, including the nonallocation of funds under the maintenance and other operating expenses that began in 2023 and led to the absence of provisions for animal feed.
As a remedy, the PREC chief and the AO had to utilize surplus or excess feed supplies from the National Livestock Program (NLP), supplementing these with grasses, foliage and legumes in order to sustain the goats.
“Additionally, the AO deployed manpower in Lot 1 to take care of and maintain the animals,” COA said. “The AO justified his actions as an exercise of the diligence of a good father of a family.”
The DA’s Ilocos Region office, which has jurisdiction over the goats, told state auditors that the animals were procured under the locally-funded project (LFP) called “Strengthening the Agro-industrial Incubation Program in Region I through Crop-Livestock Diversification.”
No funds allocated
Being an LFP, it was not included under the DA’s regular programs, activities and projects or PAPs.
The COA acknowledged that the DA tried to propose funding for the project under the 2023 and 2024 National Expenditure Programs to sustain and expand its impact, but these were not included in the General Appropriations Acts for the said years.
Citing their interview with the AO, state auditors noted that the supply of animal feed sourced from the NLP was “delivered intermittently” during the first semester of 2024 due to procurement delays attributed to the DA’s Ilocos Region office.
The delivered animal feed was only made available around June 2024, with no additional allocation of NLP feed provided to the goats during the second semester of the year, COA said.
The AO then had to resort to a temporary measure which was to use grasses, forages and legumes to sustain the animals, but these alternatives were “insufficient to meet their nutritional requirements.”
Despite this, state auditors pointed out that the AO still has the responsibility of informing the DA about critical concerns such as the shortage of animal feed.
The AO, however, was able to raise the issue during management committee meetings held at the DA’s Ilocos Region office in 2023 when the feed supplies began to run low.
DA primarily responsible
“On the other hand, management (DA) holds the primary responsibility for ensuring that essential inputs, particularly animal feed, are adequately considered in the agency’s budget and that project implementation is carried out effectively,” COA said.
It cited rules under Presidential Decree No. 1445, or the Government Auditing Code, which states that persons entrusted with the possession or custody of funds or property under the agency “shall be immediately responsible to him without prejudice to the liability of either party to the government.”
The law also states that the head of a government agency is “immediately and primarily responsible for all government funds and property pertaining to his agency.”
For COA, the failure on the part of the DA to hold primary responsibility over the goats “reflects a lapse in planning and oversight,” which it said was not in accordance with PD 1445.
COA recommendations
State auditors recommended that funds should be allocated for the Anglo-Nubian and Saanen Goat Production Project by integrating these into the DA’s regular PAPs.
They also asked the DA to instruct its designated PREC chief to “identify and properly document the specific requirements for animal feed, medicine and other essentials” and to regularly report these needs to the regional office for appropriate action.
A review on the goat production project should also be initiated by the DA, “considering the possibility of distributing the remaining goats to qualified beneficiaries or transferring them to other suitable projects.”
The DA should also ensure the installation of a monitoring and oversight system to guarantee the proper implementation of livestock management plans.
The DA’s Ilocos Region office, meanwhile, told auditors that fund allocation for the procurement of animal feeds, specifically for the goats, has been included in the project and budget proposal for 2025.
The PREC chief and the designated resident veterinarian also committed to identify and compile specific requirements for the goats.
