KAWIT, Cavite — A Commission on Audit (COA) report found that 17 accountable officers in the Municipality of Kawit were not sufficiently bonded to cover cash advances granted to them in 2020, potentially putting government funds at risk.

The audit, which examined the local government’s financial transactions, revealed that the fidelity bonds of these officials fell short of the cash advances they received, in some cases by over P1 million pesos.

According to the report, the highest excess was for Agustina Lavina, whose P5-million-peso maximum accountability was exceeded by over P61 million pesos. Other notable cases included Rey Victor Santos, with an excess of P1.9 million pesos, and Gladies Ann Mayette L. Alastoy, exceeding her limit by P425,000 pesos.

COA warned that these conditions put the government at risk of non-indemnification in cases of defalcations, shortages and unrelieved accountabilities.

The audit body recommended that Kawit’s municipal mayor Angelo Aguinaldo direct the treasurer to increase the fidelity bond amounts for the accountable officers. This would ensure coverage of cash advances granted under Treasury Circular No. 02-2009.

In response, the municipal government stated that instructions were given to the treasurer to immediately review the total accountability of all officers and increase bond amounts accordingly.

The report also flagged issues with the municipality’s disbursement practices. In 41 instances, single checks were issued to cover multiple disbursement vouchers for different payees, complicating transaction tracing and monitoring.

COA noted this practice violates Section 111 of Presidential Decree No. 1445, which requires detailed record-keeping to safeguard against inaccurate or misleading information.