A blame game has started over the spending of funds worth over PHP67.32-billion to tackle COVID-19.
The officials of the Department of Health (DOH) engaged in pointing fingers at the House inquiry on the Commission on Audit’s findings of “deficiencies” in the health agency’s spending.
Health Secretary Francisco Duque III and Undersecretary Leopoldo Vega blamed various reasons for the DOH’s failure to use up all the funds allocated for allowances of healthcare workers.
Vega said not all healthcare workers at the front lines of the COVID-19 pandemic received allowances under the two Bayanihan laws.
Rep. Stella Luz Quimbo (Marikina) reminded Vega that it was the DOH that told the congressional bicameral conference committee that there were some 562,000 healthcare workers who should receive additional pay for their service.
Quimbo said the DOH only paid allowances to around 384,000 healthcare workers.
Duque pinned the blame on COA for setting the rules for special allowances. COA chairperson Mike Aguinaldo, however, said that the state auditing agency can relax its requirements.
“If there are issues on COA requirements, dahil kung mayroong (if there are) some requirements perhaps not apt under the present circumstances, pwede naman kami sulatan at tanungin kung pwedeng i-relax ang ibang mga requirements (they can write to us and ask us if we can relax other requirements),” Aguinaldo said.
The inquiry was initiated after COA’s annual audit report which found “deficiencies” in P67.32 billion of the DOH’s spending on the COVID-19 response.
Duque stressed that there was no corruption involved in these transactions and noted that they are working to address the items flagged by the COA.
