THOUSANDS of in-kind donations intended for victims of Typhoon Ulysses that hit Cagayan Valley Region in 2020 remain undistributed, including food and medicines that were found rotting, expired, or half-eaten by rats.
This was revealed by government auditors in the 2021 audit of the Department of Social Welfare and Development (DSWD) released last July 15.
Records obtained by the audit team showed DSWD Field Office 2 in Tuguegarao, Cagayan received 126,172 donations in-kind, including food and non-food items, from various donors who responded when Typhoon Ulysses struck Luzon in November 2020.
However, auditors discovered that 21,824 donations were still with the agency as of yearend 2021 or more than a full year after they were received.
The Commission on Audit said release of relief goods should have been expedited particularly for those items considered “highly exposed to damage, rotting, and expiration.”
“During the inspection, we observed that 223 sachets of milk/choco powder… were already expired and destroyed by rats while 1,434 bottles/tablets of medicines are about to expire in April 2022. For canned goods, though not yet expired, they were exposed to rotting and damage,” the audit team said.
Spoilage of donated goods was not the only problem, however, after auditors found that distribution of 38,796 in-kind donations including sacks of rice were not backed by Requisition and Issue Slip (RIS) or Relief Distribution Sheets (RDS) as required under the Government Accounting Manual (GAM).
The distribution handled by the Regional Resource Operation Section (RROS) included 8,140 food items and 30,656 non-food items.
When asked why records of the donations were not submitted to the National Disaster Risk Reduction and Management Council (NDRRMC) through the Office of the Civil Defense (OCD), the RROS explained that it was overwhelmed by the influx of donations so that the receipt and release of donations were no longer recorded or document.
The RROS head likewise admitted to not being aware that such a reporting mechanism was required and the that the COA should be copy furnished.
In addition, auditors sought an explanation why 16,602 in-kind donations from private donors ended up with three organizations funded by the DSWD. These were the Cagayan Valley Regional Rehabilitation Center for Youth (CVRRCY), the Regional Haven for Women and Girls (RHWG), and the Reception and Study Center for Children.
The audit team pointed out that per donors’ intended purpose, the donations were supposed to be distributed to displaced families due to Typhoon Ulysses.
It noted that the items taken from private donations were similar to goods and supplies “regularly requested, purchased, and delivered to the residents of the Centers,” meaning their provisions should come from agency funds.
“The RROS head commented that it’s the DRMD (Disaster Response and Management Division) chief who decides where to issue the balances of in-kind donations and he has no control over their options,” the COA noted.
Due to poor handling and distribution, the commission noted that relief goods did not reach the typhoon victims as intended by donors.
“As a result of above deficiencies… donations in-kind and relief donations were not properly and completely accounted for, thus, deprived intended beneficiaries of the aid they should have received as the time they need it as well as the donors who entrusted their donations to the agency,” the COA added.
The DSWD leadership assured the COA that regional directors have been instructed to address the problem and ensure compliance with COA Circulars No. 2014-002 and 2020-009 covering proper accounting and distribution of donated items,
Likewise, the DRMD head was ordered to stop diverting donated goods to DSWD Centers and release undamaged donations to deserving beneficiaries.
