MANILA (UPDATE)- The Commission on Audit has required the Department of Tourism to submit documents that would support the regularity and validity of its transactions totaling P3.837 million deemed "irregular, unnecessary, unconscionable, excessive and extravagant."

In the 2021 annual audit report on the DOT, state auditors told its management to strictly adhere to governing laws, rules and regulations to ensure regularity of transactions.

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Among the flagged transactions that has to be justified by the DOT was the P236,500 contract of the Office of the Secretary (OSEC) with Grand Hyatt Manila in Taguig City for 75 persons despite the attendance of 13 persons only.

There was also P1.534 million irregular charging of financial assistance to Pacific Asia Travel Association.

DOT Region 1 also spent P697,854 for the Ridge and Reef Travel Corridor Launching in Baguio City, including an “extravagant” plated lunch for 60 persons at P1,100 each as well as payment for a cancelled lunch reservation at Pannzian Beach and Mountain Resort due to bad weather.

“Otherwise, demand full refund of the amounts considered as irregular, unnecessary, unconscionable, excessive and extravagant in nature,” the audit team said.

The audit report noted a few comments from the DOT management, including the belated submission of additional documents to support the validity of transactions in relation to the PATA spending.

“They further explained that the circumstances were difficult considering that the decision to cancel the lunch reservation in Pannzian Beach and Mountain Resort and to transfer the accommodations to another hotel were beyond their control,” the audit team noted.

The audit report also noted P49.270 million disbursement with delayed or non-submission of supporting documents, including payments for salaries of job order and contractual personnel of the OSEC as well as well as other regional offices.

The auditors however noted that the management of DOT offices agreed to their recommendation that chief accountants and other responsible persons submit the lacking documents.

Other spending of the DOT amounting to P20.69 million did not adhere to the provisions of Republic Act No. 9184 or the Government Procurement Act “casting doubts on the integrity of the procurement processes and reasonableness of the awarded contracts.”

Among the mentioned contracts in the audit report is a P5 million procurement of Visitor Information and Travel Assistance VISITA Web-based Application by DOT Region 1.

The DOT Region 1 management however told auditors that they resorted to negotiated procurement because the web-based application is a system that has never been created before.

A copy of the audit report was received by the office of former secretary Bernadette Romulo-Puyat on June 22, 2022.

Romulo-Puyat said that the "concerned departments of the DOT have already addressed the auditors’ concerns and have submitted the necessary documentation on the flagged transactions."

"I am confident that the DOT’s response would satisfy the concerns of COA and live up to the 'unqualified opinion' which the audit agency had accorded the tourism department in 2020 and 2021," she said in a statement.

"This is COA’s highest audit rating for any government agency, attesting to the fact that the DOT strictly complies with the audit rules and regulations to ensure the utmost accountability and transparency in the DOT’s operations, particularly in the management of its financial resources," added the former tourism chief.

Romulo-Puyat added that the audit rating was "a testament to the integrity of the honest and hardworking team that I left behind at the DOT."

The report can also be downloaded from the COA website.

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