THE Office of the President (OP) gave out P1.48 billion in fund assistance to the Department of Health and seven government hospitals in 2023 for the procurement of various medical equipment, with a one-year timetable for implementation.
Government auditors raised concern after they found that only P80.64 million or a measly 5 percent of the allotted amount have been disbursed as of Dec. 31, 2023.
In response to the audit observation, the OP said the Technical Services Office under the Office of the Deputy Executive Secretary for Financial Administration (ODESFA) maintains a “dedicated tracking system” that monitors the fund utilization of local government units and hospitals.
Based on a breakdown provided in the 2023 audit report of the OP, P20 million was released to the Quirino Memorial Medical Center, P25 million to the Rizal Medical Center, P64.824 million to the Zamboanga City Medical Center, P200 million to the Philippine Orthopedic Center, P830 million to the Department of Health, P100 million to the Cagayan Valley Medical Center, P187.87 million to the Southern Philippines Medical Center, and P50 million to the provincial government of Zamboanga Sibugay.
The money was sourced from the OP’s Socio-Civic Project Fund (SCPF).
“Our further analysis of the disbursements of the financial assistance taking into account the time elapsed measured in one year from the date of fund transfers based on the agreed timeline in the MOSA (memoranda of agreement) …showed that five hospitals have zero utilization rate as at year-end,” the audit team said.
The five were identified as Zamboanga City Medical Center, Philippine Orthopedic Center, the DOH, Cagayan Valley Medical Center, and the provincial government of Zamboanga Sibugay.
“Although the one-year time frame has not yet elapsed, our apprehension arises from the current status of fund utilization and the absence of quarterly disbursement reports. This is significance because any delay in fund utilization directly translates to a postponement in delivering benefits to the intended beneficiaries,” the auditors pointed out.
On the other hand, Rizal Medical Center was listed as having already completed its equipment acquisition while Quirino Memorial Medical Center and Southern Philippines Medical Center were reported as “on target” to finish their procurement process within the one-year period allowed.
The COA reminded the slow-moving recipients that they are required to return any unused or excess funds to the OP once the 365 days are up.
On the other hand, the Office of the President was urged to address the cause of delay and spur the recipients of the cash assistance to speed up their procurement processes.
“Based on the foregoing analysis and disbursement trajectory, it is best for OP to institute measures that would ensure robust utilization of financial assistance by the implementing agencies aiming to reach the intended indigent beneficiaries,” the COA said.
