COA: PLM hiked fees due to fund lack

The Pamantasan ng Lungsod ng Maynila (PLM) has approved an increase in tuition and miscellaneous fees due to its lack of funds, according to the Commission on Audit (COA).

In its 2011 report, the audit agency said that as of the end of last year, the Manila City government which runs the university still owed it P394.86 million in subsidies.

The quarterly subsidy of P78 million is the school’s principal source of funding for its operations.

Last year, P315.89 million or 48.68 percent of PLM’s total annual budget was not released, COA added. In 2010, the university failed to receive P78.972 million from the city government, it noted in its report.

As a result, the school was forced to put on hold its plan to improve its facilities, the audit agency said.

“[The] majority of its proposed projects for the improvement of school facilities as well as the procurement of necessary equipment, furniture and fixtures were deferred to the disadvantage of the students,” it reported.

COA urged PLM officials to talk to Manila Mayor Alfredo Lim about the lack of funding so that the city government could take action.

In response to last year’s COA report, PLM officials said that they did their best to collect the city government’s unpaid obligations to the university although they were not optimistic due to the reported shortfall in the city government’s revenue collection.

They added that to keep the school open, they approved hikes in tuition, miscellaneous and other fees for their undergraduate, graduate and special program.

Sought for reaction, PLM acting president and secretary to the mayor Rafaelito Garayblas denied that the school had approved a hike in tuition and other fees.

At the same time, he said that the release of the city government’s subsidy was merely delayed although the school would be able to manage.

He also stressed that the city government had settled its 2011 obligations to the university and that for this year, it just owes the school P48 million after it released P30 million out of the quarterly subsidy of P78 million.