THE Commission on Audit (COA) has sustained the liability of former Iloilo provincial officials and a power company in relation to the disallowed payment of P4,007,111 electricity bill by the provincial government in 2009 to 2010.
In an 11-page decision, the commission en banc granted the petition for review filed by former provincial accountant Lyd Tupas and Department of Accounting head Sandra Bionat asking that they be excluded from the list of persons held liable.
However, the COA held that the disallowance against late governor Neil Tupas Sr., General Services Office head Ramie Salcedo and Green Core Geothermal, Inc. (GCGI) shall remain in effect.
Records showed the Iloilo provincial government planned to construct a multi-purpose convention center in 2007 and contracted the National Power Corp. (NPC).
Under the contract with the energy firm, the province agreed to pay the minimum charge from October 2007 to December 2011 regardless whether the contracted supply was consumed or not.
But in a resolution issued December 13, 2007, the Sangguniang Panlalawigan passed a resolution recalling the earlier authority it granted to the governor to obtain a loan for the convention center, forcing the project to be shelved.
On October 24, 2004, the Power Sector Assets and Liabilities Management Corp assigned the contract for energy supply between Iloilo and NPC to GCGI which, as an assignee, assumed all rights and obligations of the NPC.
In the 2010 audit of the provincial government’s transactions, state auditors issued a notice of disallowance against the payment made to the power supplier, noting that the amount was “excessive.”
“The highest actual consumption during the period December 26, 2009 to April 25, 2010 was only 160,237 kWh compared to the monthly contracted energy of 400,000 kWh,” the audit team said.
It pointed out that the excess payment could have been avoided had provincial leaders negotiated with GCGI to reduce the contracted energy supply in December 2007 when the planned convention center was shelved.
The COA held that the contract between the province and NPC was valid hence Lyd Tupas and Bionat only acted in accordance with the rules when they processed the release of the payment.
“Petitioners Bionat and Tupas cannot be made personally liable. Moreover, their reliance to a validly executed MOA demonstrates their good faith, which supports their exclusion from liability,” it said.
“Nevertheless, this Commission cannot entirely lift the ND as the payment for the electricity was clearly excessive. The total amount paid by the province is more than thrice the amount it consumed and is clearly excessive by P4,007, 111.91, thus, properly disallowed” it added.
