Vice President and Housing and Urban Development Coordinating Council chair Jejomar C. Binay clarified that it is the responsbility of local government units to liquidate the land survey funds granted to them, after reports came out that 28 LGUs failed to submit liquidation reports.
A Manila Times article reported that 28 LGUs have failed to submit liquidation reports of funds transferred by HUDCC amounting to P28,322,107.47 as of December 2013.
"The actual unliquidated balance is P24,472,968.20, and not the P28.32 million reported," Binay corrected.
Binay said that the HUDCC has been conducting site visits and issuing follow-up letters requiring the concerned LGUs to submit their reports.
"It is the responsibility of the LGUs to submit the liquidation reports, as HUDCC is only tasked with giving them the funds. Nevertheless, we have already introduced measures to prevent similar occurrences in the future and ensure that the funds are really utilized for its proper purpose," he added.
According to Binay, HUDCC decided to acquire consulting services for the survey of the proclaimed lands through public bidding since 2014.
To date, HUDCC has conducted public bidding to hire land surveyors for 6 projects with a total approved budget cost of P9,970,000. The same scheme is also being used this year, with the HUDCC Bids and Awards Committee conducting bidding for 3 land subdivision survey projects worth P4.182 million.
Binay also said that HUDCC continues to follow up the unliquidated amounts with the concerned LGUs. He added that field visits to the LGUs have been scheduled this year to reiterate the submission of audited liquidation reports or demand refund in case the projects remain unimplemented and unutilized.
Under Memorandum Order 74 signed in 2002, the HUDCC was directed to implement post-proclamation activities in areas declared as socialized housing sites.
HUDCC allocated in its annual budget funds for survey work of the proclaimed lands for socialized housing under the General Appropriations Act (GAA).
HUDCC entered into memorandums of agreement with various LGUs from 2005-2013 for the financing, conduct, and approval of all survey works and eventual titling of the lots for intended beneficiaries in the said proclaimed areas. Under the MOA, HUDCC transfers the amount equivalent to the survey's estimated cost to the LGUs by cash advance.
The LGUs are meanwhile required to submit to the HUDCC documents including progress reports and official receipts of payments made for the survey, liquidation reports, certificates of project completions and disbursement reports verified by the Commission on Audit to liquidate the funds transferred by HUDCC, along with a Statement of Work Accomplished certified by the LGU.