It is good that your Association convenes here in Palawan. The Puerto Princesa Underground River is a sight to behold, one that we wish to see become part of the New Seven Wonders of the World. Your conference gives you that chance to experience this wonder firsthand, and I urge you to witness this majesty of nature.
Likewise, I highly encourage you to vote for the Puerto Princesa Underground River. For Globe, Smart or Sun subscribers, you may text “PPUR 15” to 2861. Voting is until November 11. Let us help our own Puerto Princesa Underground River be recognized and appreciated worldwide.
Palawan also provides a tranquility and calmness that can sometimes be elusive in more industrialized areas. I am sure that if all of us were meeting in the heart of Metro Manila, your attention would be divided between the Convention and the endless list of duties that each of you attend to, with your cellphones incessantly buzzing or ringing. And perhaps the conference halls would be empty and I would be speaking to only a handful of you. Such is what I understand of your dedication to your office.
You convene at a crucial time in our government’s term, and in your professions as auditors. Finance Secretary Purisima reports that the government has a strong liquidity position. The national government has announced plans for relevant infrastructure projects following its development agenda. Privatization efforts continue in the energy sector and the military is undergoing a modernization program to meet the needs of our national defense. Additional spending is expected in agriculture, and we are spurring investments in housing in partnership with local governments and the private sector.
This fiscal situation did not come easily as agencies exerted no less than heroic efforts to meet collection targets and stop seepages from the system. More importantly, we are able to move with confidence because of the trust that the public continues to bestow upon this government. The firm commitment of the Aquino administration to good governance is hard currency in our oaths to the nation, and you my dear friends and fellow workers are to stand witness to this compact, as money flows in and out of state coffers.
While the fundamental duty of government is to implement the law and improve public services, with the ultimate goal of improving lives, there is a great measure of truth in the words of the former United Nations Secretary General Kofi Annan; “without good governance -- without the rule of law, predictable administration, legitimate power, and responsive regulation -- no amount of funding, no amount of charity will set us on the path to prosperity.”
Within the smallest enterprise as well as in the largest conglomerates, a system of check and balance is required in order to generate quality output. Indeed, companies that manufacture consumer and perishable goods always count on their quality control department as a pillar of success. The same is true within business process outsourcing companies where quality assurance or transaction monitoring evaluations are a norm.
The government is no different in this sense. A system of checks and balances is the hallmark of democracy and the prerequisite of good governance. Our constitution provides not just for a separation of powers between the co-equal branches of government, but also for a regulatory body – an independent commission that is tasked to “audit all accounts pertaining to all government revenues and expenditures/uses of government resources” to prevent and disallow “irregular, unnecessary, excessive, extravagant, or unconscionable expenditures or uses of government funds and properties:” the Commission on Audit.
Over the years, the scope of governmental auditing has evolved. Auditing is no longer just concerned with financial operations. Instead, governmental auditing expands to consider whether governmental organizations are achieving the purposes for which programs are authorized and funds are made available, are doing so economically and efficiently, and are complying with applicable laws and regulations. Good governance, therefore, has become a product of efficient and effective internal auditing.
Most, if not all of you gathered here today, work tirelessly without seeking public recognition or acclaim. You are the nameless and faceless public servants who have exhibited unselfish heroism and courage in the performance of duty.
Your work is tedious, difficult, often underappreciated and at times, unjustly dismissed as red tape. You have probably been called a hindrance rather than an agent of change but I assure you nothing could be more false.
The call for good governance is being heeded by more public servants each day. Along the way, we know that nothing will be perfect. There will be humps and bumps. There will be threats and barriers. And there will be tests of our resolve. It is here that I urge you to be generous with your service. It is here that you and perhaps only you, can help us stay true.
Along that path, do not be afraid to tell us if any of us or all of us is veering from course. Never hesitate to bring an irregularity to our attention, regardless of who your most thorough findings reveal to be at fault. If you need the mantle of the government’s protection, come to us and we will stand for you as you heroically stand for the law.
Nakikita po natin ngayon na ang isang pamunuan na naninidigan sa tapat, wasto at hayag na pamamahala. Dahil dito ay muling nabuhay ang pag-asa sa ating mga kababayan. Inaasama nila ang isang pamahalaan na tunay na maglilingkod sa kanila, isang pamahalaan na maninidigan para sa kanilang interes. Bilang mga kawani ng pamahalaan, sa atin nakabantay ang ating mga kababayan. Ito ang dahilan kung bakit dapat magsimula sa atin ang pagpapakita ng katapatan sa serbisyo at pananalig sa prinsipyo ng buong-puso at hayag na paglilingkod.
In furtherance of our goals towards a good and transparent government, I stand by AGIA’s call to institutionalize the Internal Audit Service across government units.[3] I urge all the members of the AGIA to further spur the adoption of the IAS by all agencies, through continuous exchanges with agency heads on how the IAS can effectively be setup and implemented. Perhaps some do not know how to establish the plantilla or fund the new office. Dialogue with them. Educate them and show them, through the gains you have all made, that the IAS is not only possible, but needed now more than ever.
We have only so much time to deliver on the promises we made to the people. Our resources, no matter how abundant, shall always be precious considering the scope of our work. The taxes and funds paid freely by a trusting public, deserve no less than the most diligent care as outlined by law.
Lord Acton once said that “Liberty is the harmony between the will and the law.” I have no doubt that the members of the AGIA will insure that we attain liberty in our term.
Thank you very much.
Mabuhay po tayong lahat!