Commission on Audit (COA) OIC Director III Tracy Ann Sunico revealed on Tuesday that anomalies in Department of Public Works and Highways (DPWH) projects can be traced back as far as 2015.
According to Sunico, as early as 2015, their auditors had already identified and raised concerns about awarding multiple contracts simultaneously to the same contractors. These contracts were considered questionable, possibly indicating irregularities or potential issues in the procurement process.
She also mentioned that she believes the issue had already existed long before 2016.
“Nafa-flag na po nila na questionable yung mga NFCC sa kadahilanang maraming hindi lahat nade-declare ng mga bidders doon sa kanilang financial and technical documents, yung mga list of ongoing projects po nila,” she said, stating that many bidders failed to fully declare their ongoing projects in their documents, which lack full disclosure that raises concerns about the accuracy of their Net Financial Contracting Capacity (NFCC) computation.
“Meron din pong observation pagdating doon sa mga same key personnel na naa-assign din sa mga simultaneous o sabay-sabay na project ng mga contractor, ganun din po ang kanilang mga equipment,” Sunico added.
She further mentioned that there have also been observations related to the Report on Publicized Government Programs, Projects, and Activities (RPPGAU) and the Projects and Contract Management Application (PCMA) of the Department of Public Works and Highways (DPWH). According to those systems, certain projects were already reported as 100% completed. However, based on the validation or ocular inspections conducted by the auditors, many of those projects were not actually finished or were still lacking in some aspects, despite being declared as fully completed.
“Marami din pong observation ang mga technical audit specialist natin or yung mga engineers po namin sa COA kapag po nagi-inspect sila. At kung minsan ang mga observation po nila ay halos ganun din po sa mga auditors na may mga kulang o hindi po talaga kumpleto yung mga projects. Or minsan mas mataas po yung kontrata as compared doon sa technical evaluation o mga na-compute po ng mga technical specialist po natin,” she added, emphasizing the recurring issues.
The Manila 1st District Representative Ernesto Dionisio Jr. asked what happened to the flagged anomalous DPWH project since 2016, to which Sunico answered, “If I may sir, meron kaming listahan ng mga notices of charges, suspensions and disallowances po. Umaabot na po siya since 2015-2016 ng 120 billion pesos po.”
“Mukhang mas malalim pa ang nahukay natin on day one pa lang. COA seems to be doing their job, pero mukhang napupunta lang sa wala yung mga findings nila, until President Bongbong Marcos has rang the bell and raise their alarm sa ating pamahalaan na maraming anomalous na nangyayari.” Dionisio said, expressing dismay at the widespread anomalies taking place as they had uncovered the deeper issues.
Dionisio pointed out that the findings of COA often end up being disregarded until President Ferdinand “Bongbong” Marcos Jr. gave directives to take action.
Moreover, Sunico admitted that not all DPWH projects undergo inspection by the COA, primarily due to the sheer number of projects and the agency’s lack of manpower, with only two auditors assigned.
She further noted that in the first district of Bulacan alone, there are already around 100 flood control projects, highlighting the challenge of conducting thorough inspections with such limited resources.
