THE four cities in northern Metro Manila collectively called Camanva (Caloocan, Malabon, Navotas and Valenzuela) either failed to meet deadlines for the submission or did not submit any quarterly and annual Utilization Reports of their respective Special Education Funds (SEF) in 2024.
In separate Compliance Audit reports released last September 3, the Commission on Audit said the four cities violated the guidelines set in the Department of Education – Department of Budget and Management – Department of the Interior and Local Government (DepEd-DBM-DILG) Joint Circular No. 1 s. 2017 which required transparency in the disbursement of the SEF.
Disclosures by the local government units showed Valenzuela City allocated P800 million for SEF last year, Caloocan City had P420 million, and Malabon City set aside P196 million. How much Navotas City appropriated for its 2024 SEF was not declared in its Compliance Audit.
Auditors said the Local School Boards of the cities of Caloocan and Malabon did not submit their quarterly and annual reports on SEF Utilization within the required timeline to the DepEd Central Office.
While Malabon furnished copies of the SEF Utilization to the Sangguniang Panlungsod and the regional offices of the DILG and the DBM, the audit team said Caloocan did not do so.
For Navotas City, the 2024 quarterly SEF Utilization Reports were not submitted to the DepEd CO, nor were copies of the said report submitted to the local Saggunian and the DBM Regional Office.
In the case of Valenzuela City, it submitted the quarterly and annual reports via email and to the DILG through the Full Disclosure Policy Portal. However, none was submitted to the regional office of the DBM.
The COA reminded the Metro Manila cities that compliance with the Joint Circular is important for the monitoring, transparency and accountability in the allocation and utilization of the SEF.
“Consequently, the delayed submission hindered the ability of the oversight body/agencies to efficiently perform their monitoring duties on the [cities’] performance on SEF utilization,” the commission pointed out.
The COA, however, noted that Caloocan City, Malabon City, and Navotas City complied with the posting of the SEF Utilization in at least three conspicuous places within the city to allow public access and promote transparency.
Valenzuela posted only the reports in the first three quarters of 2024.
“Upon verification and inspection of the posting requirement, the SEF Quarterly Utilization Report for the 1st to 3rd Quarters of CY 2024 had been posted on the city’s official website and at the Full Disclosure Bulletin I the City Hall Compound. However, the utilization report for the 4th Quarter had not been posted on the City’s official website as of this writing,” the COA noted.
In their comments to the audit findings, officials of the four cities acknowledged the observations and committed to observing the guidelines on the submission of the SEF reports.
