MANILA, Philippines — The Commission on Audit (COA) has flagged the National Anti-Poverty Commission (NAPC) for spending P104.44 million for the hiring of 224 contract of service (CoS) personnel and consultants who performed functions “similar with the regular employees of the agency.”
Based on the COA’s 2021 annual audit report, 211 CoS personnel were hired by the NAPC last year to supposedly perform various functions related to the implementation of poverty reduction projects in line with Republic Act 11291 or the Magna Carta of the Poor.
However, the COA said a review of the contracts as well as the accomplishment reports of the CoS personnel showed they merely performed tasks and functions which could be done by the NAPC’s regular employees.
For instance, the COA noted that some of the hired CoS personnel performed security services even when the NAPC has an existing Security Service Contract with a private provider. Some performed administrative support and secretariat functions, which could be done by the existing units or departments of the agency.
The COA’s record showed that the compensation of the hired CoS workers ranged from P17,000 to P91,000 per month.
“Review of the tasks and functions of each CoS personnel stipulated in the contract disclosed that they were performing tasks, works, and functions similar with the regular employees of the agency,” the COA said. “Hiring of various CoS personnel having the same functions resulted in redundancy of work done within the assigned office/unit/service, thus, unnecessary.”
The audit body said this contravened Joint Circular No. 1, s. 2017 which states that hiring of CoS personnel shall be limited to consultants, learning service providers, and/or other technical experts to undertake special project or job within a specific period.
The COA pointed out that CoS and job order workers should not, in any case, be made to perform functions which are part of the job description of the agency’s existing regular employees.
Aside from the 211 CoS personnel, the COA also noted that the NAPC also hired 13 consultants “with redundant functions” to regular units of the agency. Of this, six were for legal services, four for media work and one each for financial, gender and development, and economic affairs services.
The COA said hiring a financial consultant was unnecessary as the NAPC was not into investment activities, not to mention that it has its own Administrative and Financial Management Service – Finance Unit and Internal Audit Unit.
The COA said the NAPC also has its own Media and Public Relations Unit that could have performed tasks like video and photo documentation and organizing media coverage and press conferences – tasks assigned to the hired media consultants.
Based on NAPC’s own financial statement, it spent a total of P104.44 million for professional services in 2021: P96.21 million for “other professional services” and P8.22 million for consultancy services.
In its financial statement, the NAPC explained that “other professional services” represented payment to CoS personnel who were hired to augment the personnel requirement of the agency.