Inconvenienced

In explaining away the delays in the payment of medicines to two of four pharmacies under the Cebu City government’s free medicines and hospitalization program, Mayor Michael Rama cited the so-called difference in orientation and policies between the City Accounting Office and the Commission on Audit (COA).

Whatever their differences are, thank God they exist otherwise the Cebu City government and other local government units (LGUs) for that matter will simply spend billions of taxpayers funds on a whim without any sort of accounting whatsoever.

In the case of the free medicines program, the COA reminded the city government to produce the prescriptions given to the beneficiaries by their doctors in order to confirm that the recipients do receive the right kinds of medicines for their ailments or existing medical condition like diabetes or hypertension.
Unfortunately, Councilor Jose Daluz III admitted that procuring these prescriptions will take months, even years and is working out a deal with COA to secure the certifications from the doctors themselves.

Whether that works or not only COA can tell but whoever thought up this program in the first place failed to coordinate with the COA on how to properly disburse and account for the medical aid.

But while Rama is dismissive of the delayed processing of the payments, saying this has occurred even during the time of his predecessor former mayor and now Rep. Tomas Osmeña of Cebu City’s south district, the program beneficiaries are downright inconvenienced. Pro-Poor and Pro-Inay pharmacies, two of the favored outlets, stopped giving free medicines until the city government pays their P11 million bill to them.

In drafting programs like free medical aid or even settling payments such as the catering services for teachers who worked in last year’s elections, the city government should remind all its agencies concerned to work out and fine tune the processes essential to ensure trouble-free and audit-proof procurement and payments.

President Benigno Aquino III was right when he declared that the COA serves as “the eyes of the bureaucracy” because they act as government watchdog for the expenditures incurred by government agencies and LGUs. Without them there won’t be a Heidi Mendoza who would come out to expose the massive irregularities in the Armed Forces.

While irregularities of that scale may not exist under the current Rama administration, there are questions over his spending priorities, like allocating funds for Christmas lights and assistance to Japanese quake victims over medical expenses of a burn baby once confined at a private hospital and even the displaced Mahiga Creek settlers.

As mayor, Rama should continually hound his people to coordinate more closely with COA in order to ensure that funds and payments are above board and released immediately.