COA wrong, BI did not lose P626M, say ex-officials Libanan, Almoro
Former Immigration Commissioner Marcelo Libanan and his former deputy, Roy Almoro, assailed the Commission on Audit (COA) for claiming the government lost P626.3 million in possible income from allegedly irregular amendments made to the contract to automate alien registration in the country.
In a phone interview, Libanan said it was “unfair” of state auditors to conclude that the changes in the build-operate-transfer (BOT) contract which the Bureau of Immigration (BI) entered into with Datatrail Corp. were “void, inoperative and without legal effect” without considering the legal opinions rendered by other senior government officials on the matter.
Libanan also clarified that the amended contract for the Alien Certificate of Registration Identity Card project was signed by Almoro, who briefly served as the bureau’s officer in charge, two months before then President Gloria Macapagal-Arroyo appointed Libanan immigration commissioner in May 2007.
Contrary to the COA findings, Libanan said the National Economic and Development Authority (Neda) had actually upheld the validity of the contract amendments not only once, but thrice.
In two separate legal opinions, he said, Justice Secretary Leila de Lima had twice agreed that the amended agreement between the BI, an attached agency of the Department of Justice (DOJ), and Datatrail was legal and that the BI should “observe the sanctity of the contract.”
Not supported by proof
“The COA report was rather raw. They did not even listen to our explanation. The COA findings were not supported by proof,” Libanan said.
“As the new BI commissioner then, I respected the existing amended contract with Datatrail consistent with the principle of presumption of regularity in the conduct of official functions by my predecessors,” he said.
In a separate statement, Libanan said the contents of the COA report were merely an “allegation of loss of projected revenues that has yet to be proven by competent and relevant evidence.”
“[I]t is clear that the COA auditors seriously erred in their audit findings… and their conclusions and dispositions are not supported by applicable laws, regulations, jurisprudence and generally accepted accounting and auditing principles,” he said.
Almoro explained that Arroyo had ordered a study of the original contract, which was signed in December 2003, for possible improvements because of complaints from foreigners residing in the country.
At the time, he said, the BI collected $50 from foreigners for the microchip-based alien registration card which was valid for only one year.
Backed by Neda, DOJ
After a two-year study conducted by the Neda, Almoro said Datatrail agreed to extend the validity of the card to five years provided the 50-50 sharing scheme would be changed to 67-33 in favor of the private contractor.
From the original 10 years, Almoro said the BI and Datatrail agreed to extend the project to 21 years to allow the private company to recoup its investment.
“Records will show that our actions then were backed by Neda. We also referred it to the DOJ for its legal opinion before we signed the contract,” Almoro said in an interview.
He also questioned the COA’s authority to recommend the rescinding of the agreement, saying that the agency did not possess any legal standing to conclude that for a BOT contract was null and void.
“The power of the COA to declare a contract void and unenforceable is merely applicable to contracts which involve the expenditure of public funds as provided under the Auditing Code or Presidential Decree No. 1445,” Almoro said.
“The COA arrogated unto itself judicial power by declaring the contract null and void as if it had judicial power. But in the Constitution, the judicial power is vested only in the Supreme Court and other courts which our laws created,” he said.
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