Audit of oil firms should be comprehensive, says Casiño

MANILA, Philippines - Rep. Teddy Casiño of the party-list group Bayan Muna urged the government yesterday to accept the offer of oil companies to have their books of accounts audited, but said the examination should be comprehensive.

He said oil firms should not impose restrictions that will make the audit difficult or restrictive. 

“They should provide all the pertinent data and documents including contracts, agreements and transactions with their suppliers and mother companies so that we can see the whole picture,” he said.

“As it is, majority of Filipinos believe that they are being fried in their own fat. We need to ascertain if these oil giants are not engaged in transfer pricing and overpricing,” he added. 

Casiño proposed that an audit process be conducted automatically every time oil prices are adjusted. 

Rep. Sherwin Tugna of Citizens’ Battle Against Corruption (CIBAC) praised the offer of oil companies to have their financial books examined. 

“This is an important good beginning that could lead to a win-win situation,” he said.

Tugna said the refusal of the big oil companies to submit their books to public scrutiny was the main reason for public suspicion that they are taking advantage of high oil prices in the world market to earn more profits. 

“I think the oil companies are seeing the writing on the wall, what with global protests against corporate greed heating up in industrialized countries as we speak,” he said.        

Militant groups have claimed that local oil prices are overpriced by as much as P9 per liter.

Sen. Ralph Recto, when he was director general of National Economic and Development Authority, supported these claims but estimated the overpricing at P8 per liter. 

Recto had a bitter word war in the media with then energy secretary Angelo Reyes, who insisted that local oil firms were keeping local oil prices at reasonable levels. 

Energy Undersecretary Jose Layug said the government is open to a public audit of oil companies and suggested that a third party of experts conduct the examination.