OWWA exec: P1.2-M hygiene kits procured from legit trading firm

Overseas Workers Welfare administrator Hans Leo Cacdac on Friday belied allegations that the agency had procured P1.269 million worth of hygiene kits from a hardware firm.

In an interview on "Unang Balita," Cacdac said they bought the hygiene kits from a general merchandise trading and supply company -- not from a hardware firm -- and that it is capable of delivering purchased items.   

“Hindi sila hardware sila ay trading and supply firm meaning ‘pag may gusto kang goods, general merchandise.  Basta kaya nilang bilhin at kaya nilang i-deliver, they will commit to purchase and deliver for you tapos dadalhin nila sa inyo,” Cacdac said in the interview. 

He further pointed out that the state auditor (Commission on Audit) might have been confused with the word “construction” on the trading firm’s official business name.

In its 2020 annual audit report, the COA said that the P1.2 million transaction was “doubtful” as it was purchased from MRCJP Construction and Trading and not from a “reputable drugstores and supermarkets.”

“Nalinlang siguro ang COA sa word na ‘construction’ kasi nandoon yun sa kanilang pangalan,” he noted.

(The COA might have been confused with the word "construction" because it is indicated in their official name.)

According to Cacdac, he met the owners of the MRCJP Construction and Trading on Thursday and they explained that the firm, which started its operations in 2008, was previously engaged in supplying construction materials to hardware stores.

Cacdac likewise said that the physical store of the MRCJP Construction and Trading is existent.

He said that the trading firm has moved to another location but it is still within the same barangay in Malibay, Pasay City.

COA said in its report that MRCJP Construction and Trading’s establishment cannot be found at the address on the collection receipt.

“Pinuntahan ko rin mismo itong MCRJP Construction and Trading. Sila ay lumipat sa isang lugar na parehong barangay pero medyo mahirap din hanapin aaminin ko pero na-locate namin sila,” Cacdac said.

(I personally went to MCRJP Construction and Trading. They moved to another location within the same barangay. We found it hard to locate them at first but we had located them.)

He shared photos of the trading firm’s physical store and a copy of its business permit.

Cacdac added that the OWWA has already reconciled all the invoices with the MCRJP Construction and Trading firm.

Moreover, the OWWA chief explained why the sanitary napkins were bought at a higher price.

According to COA, the napkins were bought for P10 to P30 per pad, which it said was very costly compared with those bought from sari-sari stores at P5 to P8.

“Ang sabi ng COA e P6 to P8 pesos lang (per piece). Kaya pala ganon e packs, pakete ang binili namin packs of eight. So P32 pesos makes sense nga naman. Bakit kami bibili ng tingi?” he said.

(The COA said the napkins can be bought at a price ranging from P6 to P8 per piece. The reason why it was priced at P32 is because we bought packs which consist eight pads. That makes sense. Why would we buy napkins in pieces?)

He said there might be a “misunderstanding” on the units indicated in the audit report submitted to the COA.

On the other hand, Cacdac lamented that the OWWA was criticized over this audit observation, saying they have received an “unqualified opinion” or the highest audit rating from the state auditors.

“Kawawa rin ang mga tauhan natin na 99.9% nakapasa, unqualified opinion sa COA audit and it is just unfortunate na umabot sa ganito. Pero rest assured magpapaliwanag kami in a fuller report to the Commission on Audit,” he said. 

(We feel sorry for our staff because we were able to audit 99.9% of our funds and we got an unqualified opinion from COA. It's unfortunate that we have reached this point but rest assured, we will submit a fuller report to the auditors.)

On Wednesday, Cacdac said the COA finding "is not yet final” and is still subject to liquidation and explanation. —LBG, GMA News