The Commission on Audit (COA) questioned the “excessive” food expenses incurred by the Department of Health (DOH) in Western Visayas for its virtual meetings.
Based on the COA report, the DOH-6 spent a total of P1,080,343.87 in food catering.
The catering expenses, according to state auditors, “were not essential in the conduct of the activities, since the participants were in their respective work stations and performed their usual functions.”
In a press conference, Christine Abuzo, chief accountant of the DOH-6, explained that only those physically present during virtual meetings at the regional office were provided with meals.
The COA-flagged 2020 transaction, which involved the “contract amount” of P1.08 million, was planned in 2019, before the COVID-19 pandemic struck, according to Abuzo.
“PagCOVID nga indi na allowed ang large gathering, indi man sya fully virtual ang amon meetng. We do the blended meeting na,” she said.
From May to December last year, the DOH-6 held more than 100 online meetings and orientations to discuss all the agency’s programs and projects.
Abuzo said they spent P5,000 to P10,000 for food per meeting.
The DOH-6 also clarified the issues found in the COA findings regarding the lack of monitoring and delayed implementation of projects in the region under the Health Facility Enhancement Program (HFEP).
The program involved P898 million worth of projects from 2016 to 2019, which include the construction of various health centers and the purchase medical equipment.
Engineer Rochelle D. Ang, HFEP head, said the funds were all downloaded local government units (LGUs) for the implementation of projects in their respective areas.
She noted that 56 projects were not yet implemented as of December 30, 2020 and 324 were already completed.
The HFEP head attributed the delays to lack of manpower. She said there are only two engineers, including her, assigned for the program.IMT
