COA report says P151M in cash advances of Emano unliquidated

CAGAYAN DE ORO CITY—Former City Mayor Vicente Emano has total unliquidated cash advances of P151 million, according to a Commission on Audit (COA) report that was made public this week.

In its audit observation memorandum dated Feb. 5, state auditors in Northern Mindanao, Luzminda Canios and Edgardo Melendez, said Emano had failed to properly account for his “confidential and intelligence expenses” from 2011 to 2013.

For 2011 and 2012 alone, Emano disbursed P83.8 million in intelligence and confidential funds.

The disbursements had no credit advice from the COA chair, which violated COA circular No. 2003-003 dated July 30, 2013, according to the state auditors.

While Emano sent the COA a letter on June 24, 2012, which had liquidation vouchers and reports on cash advances amounting to P66.8 million as attachments, the state auditors said the documents were not in order.

The auditors said the absence of a credit advice from the COA chair was an indication that the documents  Emano submitted to try to liquidate his advances were not acceptable.

The state auditors said they also had difficulty tracking down Emano’s entire expenses for the two years because other disbursements lacked documentary requirements, such as transmittal letters.

The report said the failure by Emano to furnish the audit team with copies of transmittal letters was an indication that Emano did not liquidate his cash advances.

Where the money went is still unclear.

The state auditors also quoted a bookkeeper at City Hall’s accounting department as saying: “It was the practice during the past administration that once the liquidation papers are submitted to the COA chair, the cash advances were credited in the book of accounts even without the receipt of the credit advice prescribed by COA circular No. 2003-003.”

The auditors said this practice often resulted in the understatement of cash advances.

The COA recommended that incumbent Mayor Oscar Moreno request Emano to follow up with the office of the COA chair the issuance of credit advice to be used as basis to record Emano’s cash advances in the city government’s book of accounts.

The former mayor could not be reached for comment.

But Emano’s son-in-law, City Councilor President Elipe, said the release of the audit report was meant to discredit and harass his father-in-law and that it was motivated by politics. Bobby Lagsa, Inquirer Mindanao