COA Chairman Gamaliel Cordoba pushed for the audit in line with President Ferdinand Marcos Jr.’s move to investigate alleged anomalies in the government’s flood control program amid persistent flooding in many parts of the country during monsoon season.
“Given the critical issues raised by President Ferdinand R. Marcos Jr. regarding the implementation of these projects, particularly in the Province of Bulacan, a fraud audit is an immediate and unequivocal necessity,” read the memo issued on August 12.
The order covers flood control projects of the Department of Public Works and Highways in the flood-prone province, where the government had poured P44 billion in funds to mitigate flooding– accounting for the highest chunk of funding in all of Region 3 at 45 percent.
Cordoba’s order, addressed to all supervising auditors and audit team leaders at DPWH District Engineering Offices in Central Luzon, called for the immediate submission of “all relevant documents in your custody necessary for the conduct of the fraud audit.”
It also ordered the audit officials to “ensure your availability to assist the fraud audit teams at any time during the audit.”
Just recently, President Marcos launched the “Sumbong sa Pangulo” website, where the public may report suspected anomalies in flood control projects.
In a visit this week in Calumpit, Bulacan, the President saw for himself a questionable river protection project which had been declared finished in official records but was still visibly incomplete.
