THE Commission on Audit has denied the claim of Bonena Multi-Purpose Cooperative against the Food Terminal Inc (FTI) for payment of damages totaling P8.994 million plus legal fees and other expenses.
In an 11-page decision released yesterday, the COA en banc said the claim is not backed by the required documentary evidence to establish the validity of FTI’s supposed obligation.
It also said the procurement transaction violated the rules of the Government Procurement Policy Board (GPPB) under Resolution No. 18-2021, which set a P5 million ceiling to the approved budget for the contract (ABC) on community-based projects since the whole procurement deal between Bonena and FTI was worth P132.99 million.
Bonena, represented by cooperative chairperson Isarael Reguyal, was the chosen supplier of onions for FTI under the Letter of Agreement signed on December 28, 2022. FTI officer-in-charge John Gabriel Trinidad signed for FTI while Reguyal represented Bonena.
The purchase was supposedly for the Department of Agriculture’s Kadiwa Food Mobilization Project aimed at stabilizing the price of onions in the markets after it soared late in 2022.
FTI agreed to pay 50 percent of the contract price or P66.5 million as down payment to enable Bonena to proceed with the purchase of onions. The remaining balance was to be paid upon delivery of the 8,845 bags of onions by December 31, 2022 at approximately 28 kilograms per bag.
Bonena said it delivered 187,530 kilos to the FTI warehouse but during a meeting with FTI officials on January 20, 2023, a dispute arose since FTI said the value of the delivery was short by P1.93 million based on the number of bags while the cooperative said it is owed P8.79 million based on the total weight in kilograms.
After failing to reach a middle ground with FT, Bonena filed the claim with the COA in 2023.
FTI asked the COA to dismiss the claim on the ground of lack of jurisdiction, saying the amount involved is still in dispute, hence outside of the commission’s purview.
The COA sustained Bonena’s claim that the amount can already be determined because the agreement provided that each bag must weigh more or less 28 kilos.
However, it said Bonena’s petition must be denied because the claimant failed to submit the invoices and the acceptance and inspection report that would substantiate the actual deliveries made.
It also questioned the absence of the report on the inventory of the onions and the liquidation report, which would have aided the audit team in verifying the sales proceeds.
“In view of the foregoing, this Commission denies Bonena’s claim for actual damages amounting to P8,794,636.20 due to lack of relevant supporting papers as complete documentation is an indispensable requirement for transactions requiring the disbursement of public funds,” the Commission said.
The COA added that it found the purchase price at P537 per kilogram “unreasonable.”
“Also the consideration for the contract was beyond the P5 million maximum limit of ABC for community-based projects, which is violative of GPPB Resolution No. 18-2021,” it pointed out.
Criminal charges have been filed by the Office of the Ombudsman before the Sandiganbayan in 2024 based on the transaction, naming former Agriculture Assistant Secretary Kristine Evangelista, Reguyal and Bonena employees Jocelyn Jane, Angelo Lajom, Randy Santos, Ruben Bautista, and Vince Lorenzo as co-defendants.
Graft investigators accused the DA official of conspiring with FTI officials in giving unwarranted reference and advantage to Bonena by awarding the latter the delivery contract with a total price of P132.99 million.
They said the FTI even paid an advance downpayment of P66.5 million to Bonena representing 50 percent of the contract cost, in violation of the provisions of the Government Procurement Reform Law (RA 9184).
