The Commission on Audit has called the attention of Department of Agrarian Reform-Region 3 over the illegal use of P61.5 million in agrarian reform fund to pay cash incentives and other benefits to its officials from 2007 to 2009.
CoA chairman Michael Aguinaldo and Commissioners Jose Fabia and Isabel Agito unanimously ruled that the agrarian reform fund was a special fund for exclusive use as “payment of compensation to landowners and expenses involved in the implementation of support services” for the Comprehensive Agrarian Reform Program.
CoA upheld its Dec. 17, 2014 decision disallowing the use of such fund to pay the collective negotiation agreement incentives and other cash benefits for the employees and officials of DAR Region 3.
The commission said those responsible in the decision to use the fund must give the P61.5 million back to the special fund.
There was no question to the grant of incentives and benefits since DAR personnel were entitled to such privileges, but to charge the payment from agrarian reform fund was not legal, it added.
President Corazon Aquino’s Proclamation No. 131 in 1987 created the agrarian reform fund with an initial budget of P50 billion.
The amount was augmented by the proceeds from the Asset Privatization Trust through the sale of forfeited illegal assets of the Marcos family and associates, and cash and other properties recovered by the Presidential Commission on Good Government.
CoA said only those who authorized to use the fund can be held culpable, and not those who just received the incentives and benefits.
“The Supreme Court has ruled that by way of exception, passive recipients or payees of disallowed salaries, emoluments, benefits, and other allowances need not refund such disallowed amounts if they received the same in good faith,” the CoA said.