CoA flags DoLE for P19.3M collected using unauthorized receipts, warns of falsification

STATE AUDITORS have flagged the Department of Labor and Employment (DoLE) over the collection of P19.3 million in registration fees using unauthorized official receipts, warning that the scheme may constitute criminal falsification of public documents under the Revised Penal Code. In its annual audit report, the Commission on Audit (CoA) disclosed that 193 Certificates of Registration for contractors and subcontractors were issued from 2022 to 2025 using unauthorized receipts. CoA recommended that the agency’s management facilitate the immediate restitution of the P19.3 million in unreported and undeposited funds. The audit body also detailed widespread irregularities in the administration of DoLE’s emergency employment initiative, the Tulong Panghanapbuhay sa Ating Disadvantaged/Displaced Workers (TUPAD) program. Audit findings revealed P6.46 million in excessive payouts granted to 1,275 beneficiaries in Zamboanga Peninsula, prompting state auditors to demand internal investigations and strict recovery of the overpaid cash. Additionally, 5,512 TUPAD beneficiaries across Central Visayas, Davao Region, Soccsksargen, and Caraga lacked mandatory qualification documentation, while senior citizen participants were granted assistance without required medical clearances. State auditors further uncovered P8.81 million in unclaimed TUPAD wages sitting in multi-purpose service provider accounts across Cordillera Administrative Region, Mimaropa and Soccsksargen. DoLE was ordered to demand the immediate refund and reversion of P2.15 million of those uncollected funds directly back to the National Treasury. Procurement operations for the cash-for-work initiative were also cited, with auditors noting restrictive bidding conditions, unverified suppliers and overstocking in the acquisition of TUPAD Personal Protective Equipment in Ilocos Region and Zamboanga Peninsula. DoLE closed out 2025 carrying P69.35 million in unsettled audit suspensions, P41.3 million in disallowances, and P7,204.90 in charges. Despite the operational and documentation deficiencies highlighted throughout the audit, CoA rendered an unmodified opinion on the overall fairness of DOLE’s financial statements for the fiscal year. — Pexcel John Bacon