Ched Rick Gatchalian


Sen. Sherwin Gatchalian asked COA Auditor Tracy Ann Sunico why the agency failed to detect fraud flood control projects. Screengrabed from the Senate hearing

Article (news)

COA cites lack of manpower in failure to detect, stop "ghost" flood control projects

ABS-CBN News

<div><span class="fr-img-caption fr-fic fr-dib" style="width:960px"><span class="fr-img-wrap"><img src="https://od2-image-api.abs-cbn.com/prod/editorImage/1758775960428photo-collage.png (7).png" style="width:960px" class="fr-fic fr-dib"/><span class="fr-inner" style="text-align:left">Sen. Sherwin Gatchalian asked COA Auditor Tracy Ann Sunico why the agency failed to detect fraud flood control projects. <em style="text-align:left">Screengrab from the Senate hearing</em></span></span></span></div><div><br/></div><p>MANILA — Senators on Thursday grilled the Commission on Audit over its failure to detect alleged fraud in flood control projects, with a COA official citing a manpower shortage after more than a hundred plantilla positions were cut in 2023.</p><p>Sen. Sherwin &quot;Win&quot; Gatchalian described COA as the &quot;last safeguard&quot; against corruption, which could have prevented the flood control fiasco at the Bulacan First District Engineering Office (DEO).</p><p>&quot;Sa pagkakaintindi ko po sa isang district office, mayroon ho silang power na magplano, gumawa ng detailed engineering, sila na rin nagpapa-bid, sila na rin po nag-iinspect at nagbabayad,&quot; Gatchalian said. &quot;Kapag nagbayad, COA papasok sa post-audit level. So ibig sabihin, kahit may ghost project, made-detect ng COA sa post-audit level.&quot;</p><p>“Supposed to be po,” replied COA auditor Tracy Ann Sunico.</p><p>Gatchalian then questioned why COA’s auditing team in Bulacan failed to flag projects that were reported as nearly complete just days after the project had started.</p><div><a href="https://www.abs-cbn.com/news/regions/2025/9/18/coa-dpwh-file-fraud-audit-reports-against-4-ghost-flood-control-projects-in-bulacan-1836">COA, DPWH file fraud audit reports against 4 ‘ghost’ flood control projects in Bulacan</a></div><p>He cited a case where a project was reported as 46 percent complete just two days after the notice to proceed, and 89 percent complete after only 86 days. </p><p>He noted that a separate river bank protection structure along Pampanga River in Barangay Bulusan, Calumpit, Bulacan, was declared 89 percent complete only 15 days after the notice was issued.  </p><p>&quot;Kayo ho nakita n&#x27;yo po itong mga dokumentong ito?&quot; Gatchalian asked the auditor.</p><p>Sunico said the DEOs did not submit disbursement vouchers and supporting documents, and auditors only relied on the report on publicized government program projects and activities to have a grasp on the projects&#x27; progresses.</p><p>&quot;Dahil &#x27;di pa nga mag-submit, na-compel po si auditor na mag-issue ng notices of disallowance primarily dahil may indication na po ng fraud,&quot; Sunico said, referring to the province&#x27;s resident auditor Cinderella Esperanza Santos who failed to show up at the Senate hearing due to flu.</p><div><br/></div><div><strong>&#x27;DADALAWA LANG ANG AUDIT TEAM&#x27;</strong></div><div><br/></div><p>Sunico explained that from 2020 to 2023, the government imposed pandemic restrictions, but the auditing team tried to inspect the projects as early as 2022.</p><p>She added that auditors struggled with a shortage of manpower, after around a hundred plantilla positions were removed in the agency in 2023.</p><p>&quot;Sir dadalawa lang po &#x27;yung audit team... Ibig ko sabihin, mayroon po tayong audit team leader, isa lang din po ang kaniyang audit team member. Aside from Bulacan First DEO, on which case from 2022 nasa 120 or 140 po &#x27;yung flood control projects po nila, lumobo po sila ng 2023 and 2024 by double po ng numbers, sa flood control projects lang &#x27;yun sir,&quot; Sunico said.</p><p>&quot;In 2023, sa budget ng COA for 2023, nagbawas po ng plantilla position by 100+ employees supposed to be na dapat ma-deploy sa auditing agencies. Kaya po ang distribution lang po ng bawat audit team na mabibigat, nasa 2 auditors lang po,&quot; she added.</p><p>Sunico said that COA also has limited officials assigned per province. She said that Central Luzon — which has drawn attention this year over flood control issues — covers seven provinces but is served by only 16 technical specialists.</p><p>&quot;Sa Bulacan, isa or dalawa lang po ang assigned, kaya &#x27;di niya po ma-inspect lahat,&quot; she said.</p><p>Sunico said the agency needs reinforcement through more team members.</p><p>&quot;Kailangan dagdagan kayo ng tao?&quot; Sen. Bato dela Rosa asked.</p><p>&quot;Yes po sir,&quot; Sunico replied.</p><p>Sen. Ronald Dela Rosa questioned why the problem was only raised now.</p><p>&quot;Lumalabas na po &#x27;yan sa mga budget hearing natin. As I have mentioned, para po sa 2023 budget namin, sa Bulacan alone po &#x27;yun sir ha, inalis po 120+ na positions po,&quot; Sunico responded.</p><div><a href="https://www.abs-cbn.com/news/nation/2025/9/24/ombudsman-opens-probe-into-coa-commissioner-contractor-wife-1047">Ombudsman opens probe into COA commissioner, &#x27;contractor&#x27; wife</a></div><div><br/></div><div><strong>NOT A VALID REASON</strong></div><div><br/></div><p><strong></strong>Gatchalian however rejected the manpower issue as the main reason the flood control scam slipped past COA.</p><p>&quot;Parang hindi po katanggap-tanggap na because of lack of manpower, lumagpas ito ng ilang years. Kasi &#x27;di ba every end of the year, may exit conference. Sasabihin sa &#x27;yo lahat ng deficiency doon, kapag di mo nagawa, next year puro disallowance,&quot; he said.</p><p>He also raised the possibility that some auditors could have been complicit.</p><p>&quot;Ang tanong ko, &#x27;yung mga kasama n&#x27;yo ho doon e kasama rin dito sa modus? Naimbestigahan din ba sila? Wala ho kasi si resident auditor,&quot; he said. &quot;Ang punto namin, ang last control o safeguard in the area is COA. Kapag ang COA bulag, lalampas talaga ito.&quot;</p><div><a href="https://www.abs-cbn.com/news/nation/2025/9/1/coa-says-performance-audit-in-flood-control-projects-underway-1818">COA says performance audit in flood control projects underway</a></div><div><strong></strong></div><div><br/></div><div><strong>RELATED VIDEO:</strong></div><div><span class="fr-video fr-deletable fr-fvc fr-dvb fr-draggable" contenteditable="false" draggable="true"><iframe width="640" height="360" src="https://www.youtube.com/embed/XKNVP-gcn78?&amp;wmode=opaque&amp;rel=0" frameBorder="0" allowfullscreen="" class="fr-draggable"></iframe></span><span class="fr-video fr-deletable fr-fvc fr-dvb fr-draggable" contenteditable="false" draggable="true"><iframe width="640" height="360" src="https://www.youtube.com/embed/xHRRGpy0b_U?&amp;wmode=opaque&amp;rel=0" frameBorder="0" allowfullscreen="" class="fr-draggable"></iframe></span><br/></div>

<p>Senators on Thursday grilled the Commission on Audit over its failure to detect alleged fraud in flood control projects, with a COA official citing manpower shortage after more than a hundred plantilla positions were cut in 2023.</p>

Senators on Thursday grilled the Commission on Audit over its failure to detect alleged fraud in flood control projects, with a COA official citing manpower shortage after more than a hundred plantilla positions were cut in 2023.

'Dalawa lang ang audit team member': Flood control anomalies slipped past COA due to lean manpower, says auditor

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'Dalawa lang ang audit team member': Flood control anomalies slipped past COA due to lean manpower, says auditor

Ched Rick Gatchalian,

ABS-CBN News

Published Sep 25, 2025 01:15 PM PHT

|

Updated Sep 25, 2025 01:35 PM PHT

Read More:

Commission on Audit

COA

Flood control projects

Bulacan

Senate

Win Gatchalian

Tracy Sunico

Auditing

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