Scams, messy Elections, COA Report 2013 on Marinduque anomalies, comes now a P 500-M shocker

Sunod-sunod na anomalya sa Marinduque sa nakalipas na taon 2013, ayon sa COA. Hindi raw ginagasta ang pera ng bayan ayon sa nararapat pagkagastusan, ayon mismo sa COA Report. Dedma lamang ang mga kinauukulan At ngayon ay walang habas nang pinapabilisan ang napabalita sa Facebook na inuutang ng Kapitolyo ng Marinduque sa Landbank na lumalagapak na P 500-Million.

Maaaring ganyan talaga pag panay palusot sa scams (ghost projects, mango plantation scam, fertilizer scam - cases now with the Sandiganbayan), maanomalyang eleksiyon, at pagtalikod lamang sa deretsahang panunuligsa ng COA sa kanilang 2013 Report. Mukhang sinasadyang gawin ng walang pakundangan ang mga ito dahil pakiramdam marahil ay sadyang hindi sila sakop ng batas-Pilipinas. O ito kaya ay kahalintulad ng isang 'evil geniusness' din?

Kaya eto na naman tayo. Napigilan nga ng concerned groups ang binalak na panghahalay sa Marinduque noong 2012, dahil anila, hindi kailangang mangutang para sa infra (airport, sports complex, convention center, farm-to-market roads atbp), pagkat sa national government ay makakakuha ng pondo para dito na nakagawian na. Tama nga naman dahil naipagawa ang airport (ginagawa pa rin sa kasalukuyan bagamat may gusot na dahilan ng mabagal na pagpapagawa), at iba pang gusali at infra nang hindi kinakailangang isangla si Islang Hugis-Puso.

Nagreklamo pa nga ang COA kung bakit daw naman napakalaki ng halaga na galing sa IRA na hindi ginagastos ng probinsiya para sa ikauunlad ng lalawigan. Sa mga pondong nagasta naman ay masalimuot ang mga naganap. Nadedehado raw masyado ang mga nasasakupan ng probinsya, anang COA mismo! Dedmatic pa rin?

Pangungutang. Ito kaya ay sa kadahilanang kapag sa national government manggagaling ang pondo ay mas mahirap itong manipulahin dahil sa istriktong pag-aaudit at mga patakarang dapat sundin? Gayong kapag utang naman para sa kung ano-anong programa at proyektong walang masusing pag-aaral muna na isinagawa, at kapag ang pondo ay galing sa bangko deretso sa libreta ni Isla, madaling isawsaw ang mga daliri at garapalang manipulahin ang salapi ng bayan? 

P 500-Million!

Para saan? Para raw sa "Procurement of Heavy Equipment" na ang halaga ay P 75-Million, para din daw sa "Farm-to-Market Roads" P 250-Million, para raw sa "Rehabilitation of Waterworks Supply System" P 50-Million, at iba pang project P 75-Million. Total: P 450-Million.

Ang sumatutal na gagastusin anila ay P 450-Million, na may "discrepancy" daw kaagad na P 50-Million ayon mismo sa SP Joint Committee Report, dahil P 500-M ang hiling. Iyon ay kung susundin ang gusto ng Office of the Governor. Ganunpaman, sinunod, pinalusot kaagad ng Sangguniang Panlalawigan sa araw ding iyon na inilabas ang kanilang report. Anila "AUTHORITY TO NEGOTIATE" pa lamang daw naman ang pinapakiusap. Hindi pa naman uutang, kundi hahanap pa lamang ng uutangan. Ngani?

Kaso, dahil tila sanay na sa bulok na sistema ng pamamahala, medyo nagulantang din naman silang mga bokal dahil sa nakalakip namang dokumento sa nasabing kahilingan ng Office of the Governor ay iba naman ang nakalagay: Hindi "Authority to Negotiate" kundi "AUTHORITY TO ENTER INTO A CONTRACT". Parang gusto agad ng hocus-pocus maaga pa lamang kumbaga?

Balikan muna natin yung pangungutang dati ng P 75-million para sa mga heavy equipment. Ganyang halaga rin ang ipinangutang ng nakaraang gobyerno ng Marinduque para sa mga ekwipo. Na tinuligsa at isinigaw ni Gob. Carmencita Reyes sa kanyang inagurasyon na "ginahasa ang Marinduque!".

Buweno, kamakailan lamang ay ipinarating ng dating Mayor of Boac at naging Bokal, Pedrito "Toto" Nepomuceno sa Landbank na inuutangan ngayon ang tungkol dito sa usapin ng heavy equipment na nabanggit. Bahagi ng kanyang sulat:

The P75MM loan was used to finance the purchase/importation of heavy equipment during the term of Governor Jose Antonio N. Carreon. It is also worth mentioning that out of the P75MM worth of heavy equipment bought by the Provincial Government of Marinduque, P30MM worth of heavy equipment was released from the Bureau of Customs while the remaining P45MM worth of heavy equipment was left unclaimed by the present administration and are still at the custody of the Bureau of Customs with no intention of claiming them to the disadvantage of the people of Marinduque.

Sino talaga ang nag-aaksaya ng salapi ng bayan? Ito rin ang isa sa mga kapabayaan ng provincial government na tinumbok at direktang tinuligsa mismo ng Commission on Audit sa kanilang 2013 COA Report, basahin dito at dito. 

SP Joint Committee Report NO. 21-2014, May 14, 2014.

Tingnan naman natin ang ilang bahagi ng Joint Committee Report No. 21-2014 sa Sangguniang Panlalawigan ng Marinduque, May 14, 2014, at tiyak may makikita ka pang kakaiba:

In consideration of the letter from the Honorable Governor Carmencita O. Reyes requesting for an AUTHORITY TO NEGOTIATE AN LGU OMNIBUS TERM LOAN WITH THE LAND BANK OF THE PHILIPPINES TO FINANCE PRIORITY DEVELOPMENT PROGRAMS AND PROJECTS FOR THE PROVINCE OF  MARINDUQUE IN THE AMOUNT OF FIVE HUNDRED MILLION PESOS which was referred to the herein reporting Committees, the Committee have the honor to report to this August Body, through the Honorable Presiding Officer, its observations, finding and recommendations as a result of the Committee Meeting held last May 8, 2014.

FINDINGS AND OBSERVATIONS:

1. The authority being requested by the Governor is to NEGOTIATE a possible loan with the Land Bank of the Philippines in the amount of P 500-Million. However, in the attached draft copy of the proposed resolution in its title also indicates the AUTHORITY TO ENTER INTO A CONTRACT with the said bank.

2. The intended loan amount was P 500-Million, however, the total amount of projects to be funded out of the said loan totaled only P 450-Million, thus there is a discrepancy of P 50-Million. The proposed projects as follows:

     1. Construction/Rehabilitation of Farm-to-Market Roads/Access Roads/Provincial Roads P 250-Million.

     2. Procurement of Heavy Equipment P 75-Million.

     3. Provision/Improvement/Rehabilitation of Waterworks Supply System P 50-Million

     4. Other Priority Development Programs and Projects such as but not limited to Improvement/Completion of Sports Complex, Tourism/Eco-Tourism P 75-Million.

                                            TOTAL: P 450-Million

3. The Provincial Engineer detailed that the province has a total of 120 kilometers provincial road which were not concreted or graveled. A kilometer of road to be concreted would cost around P 6-Million; thus the province would need P 720-Million for these roads to be concreted. He also said that, even for the concreting of Farm-to-Market, he said that the P 250-Million allocated from the loan would not be enough. For the Waterworks Projects, he said that the province would need P 98-Million to finance all the needed waterworks projects, although the amount allocated from the requested loan (if pursued) is only P 50-Million. With regards to the Heavy Equipment he said these are needed for the construction and maintenance of roads and other infrastructures in the province...

4. The Provincial Government has allocated a total of P 77-Million for infrastructure Development under the 20% Development Fund - Annual Investment Program. Out of this according to the Provincial Engineer, only P 14-Million were under the Provincial Engineering Office, and this amount is not being utilized since the Honorable Congresswoman Gina Reyes has secured funding assistance from the National Government amounting to P 214 Million which will be used for the construction of Farm-to-Market roads.

5. The Local Finance Committee, as explained by the Provincial Treasurer, cannot yet determine if the Provincial Government can afford the payment of the loan in the absence of the actual loan terms, the computation of interest, and the amortization schedule which shall come from the bank.

6. The contracting of loan shall be subject to the determination of the Bureau of Local Government Finance as to the borrowing capacity of the Province and is also subject to the Recommendation and Approval of the Monetary Board of the Bangko Sentral ng Pilipinas...

7.Presently the Province has an outstanding loan of P 64 Million with the Land Bank of the Philippines which was granted in 2009 and 2010 and which was used in the procurement of Heavy Equipment. Some of these equipments remained undelivered to the Province. For this year, the Province has allocated for the payment of said Loan Amortization. However, according to the Provincial Administrator, the Province has already filed a case against the Land Bank of the Philippines and was able to secure an injunction. The payment of the said loan were stopped but the LBP filed a motion for reconsideration and, therefore, the allocation for the said loan amortization must be kept intact and can not be used for other purposes.

8. SP Member Amelia Aguirre and SP Member Adeline Angeles manifested that a Feasibility Study would be necessary to clearly reflect the details and general rationale of the projects and programs to be financed out of the said loan. They said that it would be their guiding point to decide on the matter as whether the contracting of the loan would be necessary BM Angeles manifested her reservation to decide on the matter pending the submission of the documents she requested, which includes the Feasibility Study, the Provincial Tourism Plan, the Provincial Road Network Plan, and the Resource Mobilization Plan of the province.

                                                         

RECOMMENDATION:

Based on the foregoing findings and observations, the Joint Committee hereby recommends the following:

1. That an AUTHORITY be granted to the Honorable Governor Carmencita O. Reyes to NEGOTIATE an LGU Omnibus Term Loan in the amount of P 500 Million with the Land Bank of the Philippines and Other Government Banking Institutions relative to the Proposed Projects of the Provincial Government of Marinduque, subject to the Ratification of the Sangguniang Panlalawigan and subject to applicable and existing laws, rules and regulations.

2. That the documents being requested by some Members of the Sangguniang Panlalawigan be requested from the concerned offices.

Respectfully submitted,

Sabino P. Fabrero, Harold Y. Red.

Juan R. Fernandez, Jr. Mark Anthony E. Seno

Theresa P. Caballes, Amelita L. Aguirre

Adeline M. Angeles, Norma J. Ricohermoso

"The timing of the past and present proposed loans, being always nearing an election, has always become a suspect. It is one of the reasons why we initiated a people’s initiative in opposing the (previous) proposed loan and that there is a possibility that we will do the same if they insist on pursuing this loan."

- Toto Nepomuceno, Marinduque Movers

Resolution No. 318 Series 2014 (May 14, 2014), adopting Joint Committee Report No. 21-2014 of the Committee on Ways and Means, Committee on Appropriations, and Committee on Rules, Laws and Ordinances regarding the Request of the Governor for an Authority to Negotiate a Loan Term with the Land Bank of the Philippines to finance various Infrastructure and Tourism Development Projects in the Province in the amount of P 500 Million Pesos.