By Atty. Antonio P. Pekas
That is a whopping amount of money. Interest payments on that would also be big money. And so the COA noticed in its audit report recently why the amount was transferred from a trust fund to a high yielding savings account.
Such transfer could only be legally done if the funds are idle funds. Which is defined as money in excess of a Local Government Unit’s normal operating requirements. But the funds are not idle.
Those funds were for specific projects. If officials can transfer big amounts in government accounts such as the aforesaid amount to have higher interest such as in time deposits, what can prevent officials from delaying the implementation of projects so they can earn more interest? And with the state of corruption in this country, the interest earned might just land in some politician’s pockets instead of in government coffers.
So the specific projects the funds were intended for “can go hang.” Government projects are supposed to be for the benefit of the people. While interest rates pocketed by politicians only benefit the latter– those politicians.
97% of the amount illegally transferred by Baguio City to high yielding accounts were earmarked for specific projects which are to benefit the people of Baguio.
Thus, the COA recommended that the bulk of that whoppingly big amount be “returned to the Trust Fund Current Account for immediate implementation of the intended projects.”
But what does this have to do with us in this election time? As earlier said, this involves big money. Remember, this is election time and everybody is spouting motherhood statements like “good governance”, “honesty”, “transparency”, “clean administration,” etc., etc.
Juggling of funds to benefit is a sure indicator something is wrong with an administration. More so in this case where the amount is dizzyingly big, almost a billion.
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Somewhere in the pages of this paper is an article about the request of Baguio City Mayor Magalong for the City Council to give him authority to enter into a deed of sale for the city to buy parcels of land for purposes of land banking. The price would almost be P100M.
Somebody muttered, “Why go into land banking when people are hard-up or are going hungry because of measure which are still fresh in our minds: the lockdowns and restrictions of movements of Baguio residents and of nearby municipalities? Moreover, during those lockdowns, any ayuda from the city was minuscule. Just a few kilos of rice, 3 or 5 cans of sardines and some noodles. And now they are going into land banking which is for profit or in the future?”
Another one quipped, “Our basic needs are immediate which we cannot satisfy due to lack of resources brought about by the 2 years pandemic.”
On my side, I say, how I wish I brokered the sale of that land. Good thing it is election time. Time to get back at those who neglected us in our times of need.
Vote wisely come May 9.
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