THE Commission on Audit has affirmed with finality its March 21, 2019 decision ordering the Makati City government to pay the P24.93-million claim of its security services contractor Triforce Services Inc. but not before illegally dismissed security guards took a P13.2-million bite off the pie.
The COA Commission Proper ruled that Triforce Services Inc. deserved rightful compensation for providing security services to the city from June to December 2015.
A group of security guards formerly employed by Triforce filed a petition to intervene, claiming they were parties in interest because they were not paid even if it was them who rendered the service the city is paying for.
Citing lack of jurisdiction, the COA said it cannot give due course to the security guards’ motion because it is the National Labor Relations Commission (NLRC) which is the proper venue to tackle the issue between the group and the security agency.
“It must be stressed that it is the labor arbiter of the NLRC that can aptly protect the interest of the intervenors. The enforcement of the judgment award of the movants against Triforce is not within the jurisdiction of this Commission, but belongs to the NLRC,” the COA pointed out.
The security guards filed an appeal on May 20, 2019 but in its decision dated Jan. 28, 2020, the COA reiterated its ruling denying the intervention for lack of merit.
But the guards still collected their money after winning a judgment at the NLRC awarding their claim against the security agency amounting to P13,205,000 for services rendered from June to December 2015.
NLRC Sheriif Reymond Lomugdang garnished the cash receivables of Triforce by notifying the Accounting Department of Makati City not to release any amount pending satisfaction of the labor case ruling.
In a letter to the COA requesting for the issuance of a notice of finality of the decision on its claim, Triforce Services Inc. informed the commission that the Makati City government has released the payment to the security guards.
COA Chairman Michael Aguinaldo and Commissioners Jose A. Fabia and Roland C. Pondoc ruled that the security guards’ petition became moot after their claim was duly paid while the security agency was given the go-signal to collect the balance of its receivable from the Makati City government.
