CoA queries Sandigan travel, meeting expenses

The Commission on Audit (CoA) flagged Sandiganbayan’s foreign travel expenditures and meeting venue selection in 2025, totaling P25.51 million.

In its annual audit report, state auditors flagged the granting and liquidation of P11.86 million in cash advances intended for the foreign travel of Sandiganbayan officials and employees.

The grants were reportedly meant for trips to the United States of America, Australia, Hungary, United Arab Emirates, Singapore and Qatar.

The audit found that the cash advances (CAs) lacked required documents such as letters of invitation, quotations for plane fares and flight itineraries.

“The absence of these documents limited the audit team’s ability to verify the necessity, propriety, and official purpose of the foreign travel,” the report read.

It noted, however, that some trips had “program agendas or registration confirmations” attached to the CAs. CoA said that the documents did not dispense with the requirement for letters of invitation.

Reports lacking

As for plane quotations and trip itineraries, the Sandiganbayan accountant reportedly told the audit agency that the absence of such documents was due to concerns for the safety of the officials involved in the travels.

The audit report also found that trips totaling P7.16 million lacked narrative reports, based on the attached liquidation reports (LRs).

CoA stressed that while Certificates of Appearance were included in the LRs, a narrative report was mandatory and complementary in nature rather than an alternative requirement.

State auditors also noted that roundtrip airfare tickets for three justices to Budapest, Hungary, totaling P621,783, “could not be determined if within the allowable rates prescribed for foreign travel” for Sandiganbayan officials.

The billing statement for the tickets reportedly indicated that the officials flew economy, while the boarding passes showed that the trip was under business-class accommodations.