Iloilo City – Three Local Government Units (LGUs) in Mountain Province were adjudged by the Association of Government Accountants of the Philippines (AGAP) as Outstanding Government Accounting Offices for calendar year 2017 last Wednesday, October 17, that highlighted this year’s AGAP week-long national convention.
The Provincial Local Government Unit of Mountain Province, together with the municipal LGUs of Bontoc and Bauko, received its accolade at the Iloilo Convention Center, Iloilo City. Also an awardee from CAR is the municipal LGU of Alfonso Lista, Ifugao. The four LGUs from the Cordillera Region joined 16 other LGUs, 10 national government agencies and two Government Owned and Controlled Corporations to complete the 32 awardees nationwide. Only three of the 181 provincial LGUs made it to the national awards, viz: Mountain Province, Albay and Quirino.
Governor Bonifacio C. Lacwasan, Jr., and Provincial Accountant Theodore B. Marrero led the PLGU delegates to receive the award from AGAP National President, Tina Rose L. Canada and Commission on Audit (COA) Assistant Commissioner Rizalina Q. Mutia. Councilor Susan Awisan and Municipal Accountant Irene Paac of Bauko and Municipal Accountant Yolanda Comafay of Bontoc received their respective award.
According to Asst. Commissioner Mutia, the different awardees met the national standards sat by AGAP and that they were duly endorsed by the Commission on Audit units handling their respective operations. In her presentation, she underscored the reasons for the endorsement which are as follows: 1) the required reports are consistently submitted on time; 2) financial reports are almost error free; 3) the unit is contributory to the implementation of the audit recommendations; and 4) the unit was observed to have been strict and or innovative in its strategies in ensuring that control procedures are implemented and observed.
Mutia urged the awardees to sustain their status and inspire other LGUs in their place to improve the overall procedures and services in the local finance departments.
Meanwhile, Gov. Lacwasan was elated to have received the award and lauded the headship of the province’s accounting department.
He emphasized the important role of the department in ensuring that all transactions in the PLGU are compliant to COA rules.
Provincial Accountant Marrero, in his message, said that award was due to the concerted efforts and sacrifices of the staff of the Provincial Accounting Office, the full support of the provincial governor and thru the full cooperation of all offices concerned.
“We are so grateful and humbled by this recognition. We never expected this as all we have been doing was just do our duties and responsibilities to the best of our abilities,” Marrero said.
NDRA, MP-PIO
Banner photo: The Provincial Local Government Unit (PLGU)of Mountain Province is a recipient of the Most Outstanding Accounting Office award for CY 2017 which was conferred by the Association of Government Accountants of the Philippines. Here, Governor Bonifacio C. Lacwasan, Jr., Provincial Accountant Theodore B. Marrero and other PLGU delegates pose for a pictorial during the awarding rites at Iloilo City. Photo by NDRA, 10/22/18
