Teachers to appeal COLA disallowance before COA

OFFICERS of the different public schools teachers’ associations in Cebu City will appeal to the Commission on Audit (COA) not to compel them to return the Cost of Living Allowance (COLA) given to them in 2015 and 2016, which was disallowed.

They will support the appeal with a signature campaign among the teachers.

Cebu City Councilor Joy Augustus Young, head of the council’s committee on education and scholarships, said he met with the teachers’ associations yesterday to discuss the disallowance and what they could do.

“One possible remedy is, after this notice of disallowance, we now have to go to Manila, sa region. We will appeal didto,” Young said.

The councilor said those responsible for releasing the COLA despite the notice of disallowance from the COA should answer, citing Presidential Decree 1445, Sec. 103.

He said the law provides that “expenditures of government funds or uses of government property in violation of law or regulations shall be the personal liability of the official or employee directly responsible thereof.”

“Also, it states that there is no need for the recipients of the disallowed COLA to refund the amounts when it was received in good faith,” Young said, adding that “the COA has to prove it bad faith before they can collect.”

Young said that after receiving the notice from the COA, the city informed the officials and employees responsible for the releasing of the COLA on 2015 about it.

“Gisuwatan nato ang persons responsible and ang order nato sa school. Nisuwat ta og katulo, di motubag. So nagpada nami og letter addressed to the COA saying nga walay response, (We wrote the persons responsible three times and we did not receive any answer. So we wrote a letter to COA that there was no response.)” he said.

Among those informed by the city about the disallowance were former mayor Michael Rama, former city treasurer Diwa Cuevas, Cebu City Public Schools Teachers president, Glodel Dexter Flores, and Isidro Tumulak Jr., Cebu City Federation of Parents-Teachers Association Inc. president.

For now teachers who received the Cola will have to return the money amounting to P18, 000.

The reimbursement will come from the Teacher’s Cash Assistance Program which is given to the teachers once a year by the city government, in the amount of P10,000.

Young said he will assist the teachers in processing for the appeal which will be filed next week.