CEBU, Philippines — Following reports on unfinished city projects, the Cebu City Council last week requested the Office of the City Mayor to coordinate with the Commission on Audit and conduct a fraud risk assessment on the multi-million-peso projects being undertaken by City Hall.
Through a resolution authored by Councilor Rey Gealon, the council said the Office of the Mayor should coordinate with COA for the assessment when the City enters into multi-million peso projects, or those that cost P50 million or more.
In a separate resolution also filed by Gealon, the council also requested the COA to do an audit of the repairs of the Cebu City Sports Center (CCSC) rubberized track oval—a project awarded to SBD Builders, whose work has been scrutinized recently by the City Council due to concerns on its ability to deliver and complete its city-awarded projects.
SBD was awarded the P50-million project during the time of former mayor Michael Rama to rehabilitate the track oval for Cebu City’s hosting of the Palarong Pambansa last July.
The track, though, immediately showed signs of wear and tear, which led to questions over the quality of SBD’s work. Since SBD has not yet been paid, ascended Mayor Raymond Alvin Garcia ordered it to do a backjob and repair the rubberized track.
In the same vein, the council also sought the COA's advice on how to proceed with the track oval project once the audit is completed.
Additionally, the council likewise approved another of Gealon’s requesting the COA to conduct an audit of the Reinforced Deck Girder Bridge project in Sitio Candarong, Brgy. Pulangbato, which has already incurred a negative slippage of 63.98%, or that it remains unfinished way past its contracted period.
This project, also awarded to SBD Builders, was recently terminated by the Garcia administration.
In an Oct. 7 resolution, the Pulangbato Barangay Council urged the City Council to declare a state of emergency in the barangay due to the unfinished project, which has led to unsafe alternative travel routes for its constituents and those from other barangays.
Specifically, the barangay council said the "unfinished bridge construction forced vehicles to use alternative routes that are unsafe and even makeshift, which pose safety risks not only to residents but also to passing motorists."
The barangay council said that a 60-day extension given to SBD, or that the project completion deadline was moved to Sept. 30, the contractor's work accomplishment was only 36.02%.
The P24-million project, which started on Sept. 15, 2023, was originally scheduled to be completed on May 11, 2024.
The council said the request for a COA fraud audit stemmed from rising concerns over unfinished city projects like that in Sitio Candarong that have caused inconvenience and raised concerns over public safety.
The audit, it said, would ensure that projects are awarded to legitimate contractors and that contractors are implementing projects according to the proposed plans.
"A fraud risk assessment is a systematic process that would help the city government identify, analyse, and reduce the potential risk of fraud, from procurement to the implementation of projects," Gealon told The Freeman yesterday.
He said that results of the audit could help the city establish protocols to further protect public funds.
"It is imperative that the project be audited by the Commission on Audit to ensure that the city's funds awarded to the contractor are used for the project, and that the specifications of the awarded project are followed and enforced," Gealon said in his resolution. — /RHM (FREEMAN)