Palace keeps hands off on 'irregular' P1.2-B tourism campaign contracts

MANILA, Philippines - Malacañang is keeping its hands off on the government's P1.2-billion tourism advertising contracts being questioned by the Commission on Audit (COA).

Communications Secretary Herminio Coloma Jr. said the Palace did not approve the contracts which were found with irregularities by the COA.

"No need for Palace approval for programs included in and funded by General Appropriations Act," Coloma said.

He added that the Department of Tourism (DOT) will respond appropriately to the audit findings.

The COA said it found irregularities in the P1.2-billion advertising contracts entered into by the government for its tourism promotion campaign "It’s More Fun in the Philippines."

In a 2014 report released over the weekend, state auditors said the advertising contracts violated the Procurement Law as they were not subjected to public bidding and were renewed and extended in an amount more than what was stated in the original contract.

The COA said it would disallow audit expenses amounting to P999.78 million unless the DOT and the Tourism Promotions Board can justify their failure to follow procurement rules and regulations. - Louis Bacani