BY GEROME DALIPE IV
ILOILO – State auditors have scored the Leon municipal government for its low utilization of disaster funds last year.
In its annual audit report 2023, the Commission on Audit (COA) lamented the town’s inefficiency in disaster preparedness and response.
Several disaster preparedness and response capabilities of the municipalities have already been funded. However, the auditors noted that the disaster risk management office failed to initiate or complete them promptly, making the municipality vulnerable to the impacts of natural disasters.
COA noted that the municipal government utilized only P3,630,559.42, or 35.19 percent, of its total P10,315,788.66 disaster fund as of December 30, 2023.
The utilized disaster fund was spent for the conduct of hazard and risk assessment, mapping, data gathering, profiling, clearing operations, and emergency services and monitoring, among others.
But the more essential programs, projects, and activities of the municipality that have been funded remained unimplemented last year, according to COA.
These include the establishment of a community-based monitoring system worth P650,000; the conduct of vulnerability analysis and risk for critical facilities and infrastructure worth P300,000; the procurement of a flood early warning system estimated at P300,000; and the construction of a drainage footbridge project worth 300,000.
Under Republic Act No. 10121, or the Philippine Disaster Risk Reduction and Management Act of 2010, the local government units are mandated to “build the disaster resilience of communities, and to institutionalize arrangements and measures for reducing disaster risks, including projected climate risks, and enhancing disaster preparedness and response capabilities at all levels.”
The law also provides that the local government unit (LGU) shall allocate not less than five percent from regular sources to support pre-disaster preparedness programs including training, purchasing life-saving rescue equipment, supplies, and medicines, for post-disaster activities, and the payment of premiums on calamity insurance.
During the exit conference, the town’s disaster risk reduction management office told COA auditors that the low utilization rate could be attributed to a lack of manpower and technical expertise in the preparation of the program of works.
The disaster risk management office said they only have three regular employees who were not even technical personnel, and a casual employee, and that the office was yet to hire additional personnel qualified to carry out their community-based monitoring system with disaster risk reduction and management and vulnerability analysis and risk assessment.
The office added that some programs were also not carried out due to the non-preparation of the necessary program of works since their office has no technical capabilities to prepare the same.
Despite the technical know-how, the town’s disaster risk reduction management office assured that they would intensify their actions to completely implement the programs and projects and utilize the available resources intended for the purpose.
The auditors recommended the convening of the Local Disaster Risk Reduction and Management Council to ensure the implementation of the programs, projects, and activities funded by the municipal disaster risk reduction office./PN
