By Jennylou Canon

PHOTO: PCOO

Presidential Spokesperson Harry Roque on Friday advised the public to wait for government agencies to comply with the Commission on Audit’s (COA) report for clarifications.

In an interview with Erwin Tulfo, Roque said that since COA’s reports are composed of preliminary observations, the public should not mind them as agencies are yet to respond to their reports.



“Importante po ang COA report, pero kagaya ng sabi ng Presidente kapag preliminary, huwag munang pansinin,” Roque said.

“Ang pakiusap sa lahat po, hintayin muna natin ang final report kasi siyempre po hindi naman alam talaga ng COA ang mga nangyayari sa pang-araw-araw na operasyon ng ahensiya,” Roque added.

Furthermore, Roque stated that President Rodrigo Duterte had advised the public to do a background check on COA officials especially now during the “election period.”



“Well isa nga pong pakiusap ng Presidente, huwag po ninyong kalimutan, panahon ng eleksiyon at kahit sinasabi natin na constitutional body ang COA, suriin po nating ang nagiging background ng mga naninilbihan diyan sa COA, okay?” Roque said.

COA is a constitutional body operating independently and is tasked to submit an annual audit report on financial and operation conditions of the government as well as its agencies.


Report sources: PCOO transcripts, COA website