BICOL University (BU) underfunded its research services in 2024 by P4.74 million and its extension services by P13.6 million but government auditors said the poorly-budgeted programs suffered worse because of improper spending on catering services for snacks and meals, even plushie pillows for napping.
In its 11-page Compliance Audit report released on July 2, 2025, the Commission on Audit said that under the Commission on Higher Education (CHED) Memorandum Order No. 20, s. 2011, the budget allocation for research services should be set at 10 percent of the total tuition fee collection after deducting the cost of college-wide common administrative costs.
This budget is supposed to cover “expenditures related to the formulation or implementation of programs, projects, and activities, such as, but not limited to honoraria and incentives of researchers, lecturers, or research presenters, research assistants (with contract of employment) and wages of other personnel, office and IT equipment, facilities, supplies and materials, training and travel expenses, in-house research review, research presentation in appropriate forum and other research activities.”
An additional 10 percent is likewise required to be set aside for extension services which includes “instructional materials necessary for effective technology transfer of research outputs to the community, skills training in livelihood relative to the research output, honoraria of trainers undertaking the technology transfer of research outputs to the community, travel, training and seminar of extension services personnel, trainers’ industry immersion program, wages of contract of service personnel other services (job order).”
For a state university like BU, the tuition comes from the Free Higher Education fund transferred to it by the CHED.
Total CHED releases for the FHE in 2024 net of the P71.54 million administrative cost amounted to P142,582,141.74. Required minimum allocations for research and extension services computed at 10 percent of this amount was P14,258,214.17.
However, based on the state university’s Financial and Accountability Report (FAR) No. 2, only P9.52 million funding was made available for research services and a measly P653,475 for extension services.
“Therefore, as shown in the foregoing financial reports, the University’s underfunding of research and extension services in CY 2024 does not comply with the existing regulations. As a result, the university is unable to fully carry out its role in helping society progress. It also slows down innovation, limits economic growth, and negatively impacts education, policy making, and community development,” the audit team said.
A closer look at the breakdown of expenditures charged against the already depleted budget for research and extension services raised auditors’ eyebrows after the discovery of obligations and charges deemed unrelated to the expense item.
Auditors traced expenditures incurred by the university’s Research and Development Management Division (RDMD) were “lodged under research services, including other MOOE (maintenance and other operating expenses) expenses.”
The audit team flagged the inclusion of “notarial fee, refilling of fire extinguishers, catering services and 80 pieces of nap pillows (napping hand shoulder sleepers pillow), catering services during the BU year-end report presentation and party in 2024, labor and materials of customized facsimiles of RDMD and office of the vice president for research development & extension (OVPRDE), and snacks served during emergency meetings.”
“The expenses listed above do not directly influence the execution or implementation of research projects, programs, or activities, nor do they support the dissemination of the results of the research for the benefit of the community or locality where the SUC is located,” the COA pointed out.
In its response to the audit findings, the BU management said it will “strictly observe CMO No. 20, s. 2011 and shall ensure to closely coordinate with the concerned offices and remain circumspect to achieve full compliance.”
