Kidapawan disbursing officer goes missing with cash

COTABATO CITY—The disbursing officer of the Kidapawan City local government disappeared on Thursday and officials suspected that he fled with funds intended for nearly 5,000 workers.

Kidapawan Mayor Rodolfo Gantuangco said Darwin Loyola disappeared on Thursday, shortly after withdrawing money from the Land Bank of the Philippines branch there.

Gantuangco, who could not say how much money Loyola withdrew that day, said the amount was for honorarium of peacekeeping action teams from the city’s barangays, teachers and job order employees. “He was last seen withdrawing funds from the Land Bank of the Philippines for the June 16 to 30 honorarium of some 2,500 members of the Barangay Peacekeeping Action Team, about 150 teachers and about 2,000 job order and contractual employees,” Gantuangco told a radio station here.

He said the exact amount that disappeared with Loyola was the subject of an audit by the Commission on Audit (COA).

“The Commission on Audit has started comprehensive audit of the financial records of the local government and that of Loyola’s office since Friday,” he said.

Gantuangco said when he learned on Thursday that Loyola failed to pay the honorarium of nonplantilla workers, he immediately ordered a search for the disbursing officer.

He said Loyola’s house in Apo Sandawa Subdivision was padlocked when the police checked on him.

Gantuangco said he ordered employees to forcibly open the vault at Loyola’s office at the City Hall. The opening, he said, was witnessed by COA auditors, the city treasurer, city administrator and the chair of Barangay Poblacion. He said they found documents, including pay slips, but no cash inside.

Gantuangco said they would try to locate Loyola as soon as possible but did not say when the nonplantilla workers would be paid. Edwin Fernandez, Inquirer Mindanao