House to give COA P10-M intel budget

MANILA, Philippines - The House of Representatives is inclined to give the Commission on Audit (COA) an intelligence budget of P10 million.

Camarines Sur Rep. Rolando Andaya Jr., who chairs an appropriations subcommittee in charge of the budget of constitutional commissions, said he would recommend the addition of P10 million in intelligence funds to next year’s P7.6-billion COA outlay.

“They need the money in ensuring that government officials and employees follow the administration’s policies on transparency and accountability in the use of public funds,” he said.

He said the audit commission would use the money in investigating financial irregularities in state offices. COA chair Grace Pulido-Tan requested for the P10-million intelligence budget.

In the past, Congress appropriated intelligence funds only to the military, the Philippine National Police, National Bureau of Investigation, the Ombudsman’s office, and other agencies with law enforcement functions like the Bureau of Internal Revenue (BIR) and the Bureau of Immigration.

In justifying her request, Tan said COA is an investigative agency like the Office of the Ombudsman and the BIR.

She said if the Philippine Gaming and Amusement Corp. is allowed to use P300 million of its funds for intelligence purposes, then the audit body should all the more be given funds for gathering information about financial irregularities.

At the same time, the COA chief called for stricter monitoring and accounting of such funds.

She said the commission would come up with new accounting guidelines that would require details on where intelligence budgets are used without sacrificing the secrecy of information and personalities involved, where such secrecy is needed.

She said the usual general certification and description on the use of intelligence funds required to be submitted by agency heads are no longer sufficient, given President Aquino’s advocacies on good governance, transparency and accountability.