Mandaue City Hall. (PNA file photo)
CEBU CITY – The Commission on Audit (COA) has flagged the charter day and year-end bonuses of about 6,000 regular employees of the Mandaue City government amounting to PHP11.61 million.
The state auditor said the PHP15,000 cash bonus granted to each regular employee in celebration of the city’s 54th Charter Anniversary in August 2023 has no legal basis.
COA cited the disbursement as “irregular expenditure” as it “lacked support of pertinent issuance or regulation, contradicting COA Circular No. 2012-003.”
The circular defines irregular expenditures as those made without adherence to established rules, regulations, or recognized practices.
Lawyer Jamaal James Calipayan, city administrator of Mandaue, said they received the notice of suspension last week.
Calipayan said they would respond to the suspension.
He explained that the granting of charter day and year-end bonuses was based on City Ordinance No. 16-2023-1822.
Republic Act 7160, also known as the Local Government Code of 1991, provides that no public officer or employee shall receive additional, double, or indirect compensation unless specifically authorized by law.
Department of Budget and Management’s (DBM) Local Budget Circular No. 65, dated March 3, 1997, also outlines that anniversary bonuses should not exceed PHP3,000 and are only granted during milestone years, defined as the 15th anniversary and every fifth year, thereafter.
The lawyer also said that following the decision of COA, the city government decided to reduce this year’s bonuses to PHP3,000 each.
“Based on the notice of suspension from COA, (the bonuses) lacked legal basis. So for this year, we hold the implementation of bonuses,” Calipayan said. (PNA)
