Former Mayor Reynor Gonzales and Vice-Mayor Cesar Gonzales of Lambunao, Iloilo, are set to face charges for violation of Section 3(e) of the Anti-Graft and Corrupt Practices Act (Republic Act No. 3019) for receiving transportation allowance (TA) in 2014.
The complaint stemmed from the 2014 Commission on Audit (COA) Annual Audit Report finding that respondents received TA despite being assigned government vehicles for their official use. Based on COA’s Notice of Disallowance (ND), Reynor received a total of P90,000.00 while Cesar received P83,880.00 as TA from January 2014 to December 2014. The COA emphasized that under the Department of Budget and Management Circular No. 2013-103 dated 15 May 2013 “those who were assigned or who use government motor transportation shall no longer be entitled to the TA, but only to the commutable [representation allowance] for the month.”
“Records show that respondents did not deny the receipt of the ND. Despite such receipt, respondent Reynor only partially settled the disallowance in the total amount of P40,400.00 as evidenced by the 21 June 2016 Notice of Settlement of Suspension/Disallowance/Charge and the receipts submitted by respondent Reynor. To this date, the record is bereft of evidence to show that he had settled the remaining balance. On the other hand, respondent Cesar had not shown any evidence that he had settled or complied with such ND,” stated the Resolution.
The Resolution cited the case of Domingo v. Commission on Audit wherein the Supreme Court pronounced that “the use of government motor vehicle and claim for transportation allowance are mutually exclusive and incompatible.”
“[B]oth respondents participated in the questioned disbursement in their respective capacities as municipal officers. Without the imprimatur of Reynor, respondent Cesar would not have been able to claim his TA,” the Resolution explained. ###