Duterte asks COA to reconfigure reports to avoid perception of corruption

President Rodrigo Duterte urged the Commission on Audit (COA) to reconfigure audit reports to prevent public perception of irregularities in flagged government agencies.

Duterte suggested the COA should explicitly state in its reports that identified deficiencies do not automatically imply corrupt activities or lost funds, and that no corruption was found by auditors.

Opposition Senator Leila de Lima stated that Duterte is corrupting the COA by ordering them to reconfigure reports and state there is no corruption from the onset.

De Lima criticized Duterte for trying to corrupt the COA instead of ordering his Cabinet secretaries to improve their agencies and ensure funds are not misspent.

She also noted that past Presidents, unlike Duterte, knew their limits and had shame, and never dared to tell the COA what to do.

Duterte's constitutional mandate, as per Article IX-D, Section 2 of the 1987 Constitution, is to examine, audit, and settle all government accounts.

He believes the presentation of findings could be improved to avoid misinterpretations.