Confidential funds belonging to the Office of the Vice President were released in cash rather than through proper banking instruments, a practice that former Commission on Audit commissioner Heidi Mendoza described as both “highly unusual” but “highly irregular.” She raised the concern during an appearance on One News’ “Storycon” on Wednesday, August 5.
Under the standards she applied while serving at COA, disbursements above a certain amount could not be handled in cash. “During my time, payments must be made through checks if in excess of P250,000 and above,” Mendoza said.
Responsibility for the questionable transaction, she argued, extended beyond the OVP itself. The bank official overseeing the withdrawal failed to act appropriately, according to Mendoza, who said such a sizable movement of money should have triggered an immediate alert within the institution.
Mendoza turned to what COA regulations say about accountability once funds go unaccounted for. When an agency cannot liquidate or return confidential funds after being asked to do so, she explained, that failure serves as prima facie evidence under the commission’s rules that the money may have gone toward personal use.
She also addressed the enforceability of audit findings. A notice of disallowance ordering the return of improperly spent amounts takes effect right away, Mendoza said, and only a temporary restraining order from a court can halt it.
Central to her remarks was the principle that no category of public spending sits outside oversight. Whether money is classified as confidential or intelligence in nature, Mendoza said, it remains bound by the government’s accountability mechanisms. Once released, she stressed, public funds have to be documented, transparent, and open to audit.
A separate issue drew her attention: the difference between an audit query and an audit observation memorandum. Requesting that auditors issue the former in place of the latter, Mendoza said, could amount to encroaching on COA’s independence. In more than twenty years working as an auditor, she said, no agency ever asked her to substitute an audit query for an AOM.
