House independent bloc wants resignation of COA chief

MANILA, Philippines - The independent bloc in the House of Representatives yesterday called for the resignation of Commission on Audit (COA) Chairman Grace Pulido-Tan for her sloppy special report on the alleged misuse of pork barrel funds that caused “irreparable damage” to the reputation of Congress.

Leyte Rep. Martin Romualdez, who heads the group, said it is possible that Tan could have been used or was part of an operation to divert the alleged P10-billion pork barrel scam away from the Aquino administration as the scandal appears to have continued until this year and involved many allies of the President.

“I think that (major errors in COA special audit) is unforgivable and out of delicadeza (sense of propriety), I think she should resign otherwise you know doing that to an institution like Congress basically brings irreparable damage,” Romualdez said in a press conference.

He also stressed that Tan not only damaged the House and the Senate but also her credibility.

The COA chief earlier announced in a press conference the results of the agency’s special audit of the disbursements of Priority Development Assistance Fund (PDAF) from 2007 to 2009, including the P3-billion pork barrel fund allegedly released to then Compostela Valley Rep. Manuel “Way Kurat” Zamora.

It turned out the report had many errors, including the item on Zamora, according to the Department of Budget and Management (DBM).

“How can you make a mistake with nine zeroes?” Romualdez said, adding that it was also unusual for the COA to hold a press conference.

Surigao del Sur Rep. Philip Pichay, who is also an accountant, hit the COA for blaming the DBM for the numerous errors, saying that COA, as an audit agency, should have double-checked the data in the report with the DBM.