THE Ramon Aboitiz Foundation Incorporated (RAFI) has clarified findings of the Commission on Audit (COA) naming RAFI as one of 19 Cebu-based non-governmental organizations (NGOs) that failed to submit liquidation reports of government funds entrusted to them for the implementation of several projects.
RAFI representative Caroline Ballesteros said that the P9.8 million funds from the Cebu Provincial Government were appropriately spent for the restoration of eight “Gabaldon” school buildings in some portions of Cebu province.
Gabaldon is a term used to describe the architectural design of establishments built from 1907 to 1946.
Ballesteros said the funds remain unliquidated as the projects are still ongoing, which prevented RAFI from issuing a final liquidation report in 2016.
Referring to an article published by CDN last July 21, titled “19 NGOs Fail to Account P32M in Assistance,” Ballesteros pointed out that the COA report citing them as having unaccounted funds since 2015 was “inaccurate.”
“The Foundation has been regularly updating the Governor’s office, Provincial Accountant, Provincial COA team leader, Provincial Administrators, and Mayors where the projects are ongoing. Letters with the status and estimated completion dates were sent to officials of the local government units concerned. From these letters, all parties concerned were regularly made aware that not all of the eight projects would be completed,” explained Ballesteros.
In its 2016 Annual Audit Report, COA recorded that P9.8 million of funds transferred from the Cebu Provincial Government to RAFI last December 31, 2015 remained unaccounted for the next 366 days.
Ballesteros clarified that RAFI only received the said amount last February 2016.
She also clarified that RAFI has not received P2.5 million for the Organization for the Economic Cooperation and Development (OECD), contrary to the claims of state auditors.
“The 2.5 million was not downloaded to RAFI. This was a project of OECD, thus the funds were directly downloaded to their account. The Office of the Provincial Administrator facilitated the project, its documentation and requirements, and arranged the fund transfer to the OECD in late September 2016,” Ballesteros said.