Bacoor City, Cavite: The Commission on Audit (COA) has called out the Bacoor City government for failing to liquidate cash advances totaling more than P51.2 million as of December 31, 2023, exposing public funds to potential abuse and misuse.
In its 2023 audit report (the 2024 report will be released in the later part of 2025), COA said the unliquidated cash advances violated Item 5.8 of COA Circular No. 97-002, which requires all cash advances to be settled at the end of each year, except petty cash.
The report showed that 11 accountable officers had outstanding cash advances amounting to P51,279,480.44.
Of the total, P44.4 million came from the city’s General Fund, P1.8 million from the Special Education Fund, and P5 million from the Trust Fund.
“The failure to liquidate cash advances at the end of the year exposed the funds to possible losses and/or improper usage of government funds,” the report stated.
COA warned that the unliquidated advances resulted in the overstatement of receivables and the understatement of related expense accounts, which could mask possible fund misuse.
It also cited COA Circular No. 2012-004, which presumes that a public officer who fails to account for cash advances may have used the money for personal purposes, as provided under Article 2017 of the Revised Penal Code.
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