EXECUTIVE SUMMARY INTRODUCTION The Municipality of Liloan is a first-class income Municipality located within Metro Cebu in the islands of Visayas, Central Philippines. It is composed of 14 barangays and 331 puroks, with a land area of approximately 5,210 hectares. As of 2020, the National Census pegged Liloan’s population at 153,197. Known as “the Light of the North,” Liloan was founded in the year 1845 and derives its name from the word “lilo” or whirling waters which are abundant in Silot Bay along Liloan’s sprawling coastline. Nestled between the mountains and the sea, Liloan is abundant in natural resources, with several marine sanctuaries that are home to rare and endangered corals and marine life, including seasonal sea turtles, and a sprawling mountain range of lush forest and endemic trees and wildlife. Liloan’s topography and climate make it ideal for growing agricultural products such as mangoes, avocados, and a variety of vegetables. A growing economic hub in Metro Cebu, Liloan’s biggest industry is real estate with over 200 subdivisions and villages home to an educated and skilled population, and is host to a growing number of businesses and light manufacturing industries such as furniture, electronic products, foodstuffs, pottery, and the like. A new domestic port was opened in 2021, further establishing Liloan as a central and strategic hub for commerce and trade in Cebu, being already centrally located a mere 10 kilometers away from the Mactan Cebu International Airport. As of December 31, 2021, it has a personnel complement of 461, as follows: Nature of Appointment to Office No. of Personnel Elective Officials Permanent Positions Casuals/Contractuals/Job Orders/Co-terminus 12 72 377 461 FINANCIAL HIGHLIGHTS Comparative analysis of the Statement of Financial Position, as graphically illustrated on the next page, showed an increase in Assets and Net Assets/Equity, and a decrease in Liabilities. i FINANCIAL POSITION 1,000,000,000.00 (in Philippine Pesos) 800,000,000.00 600,000,000.00 400,000,000.00 200,000,000.00 Assets Liabilities Net Assets/ Equity 2021 924,153,152.36 263,596,313.30 660,556,839.06 2020 829,689,458.38 374,908,531.49 454,780,926.89 On the other hand, analysis of the Statement of Financial Performance, as graphically illustrated below, showed an increase in Revenues and Surplus, and a decrease in Expenses. FINANCIAL PERFORMANCE 600,000,000.00 500,000,000.00 400,000,000.00 300,000,000.00 200,000,000.00 100,000,000.00 (100,000,000.00) (200,000,000.00) (in Philippine Pesos) Revenue Expenses Surplus (Deficit) 2021 560,143,420.04 395,132,778.06 165,010,641.98 2020 392,379,095.62 515,837,735.82 (123,458,640.20) The graph on the following page illustrates the increase in Allotments, Appropriations and Actual Obligations during the year. ii ALLOTMENTS, APPROPRIATIONS, OBLIGATIONS (in Philippine Pesos) 700,000,000.00 600,000,000.00 500,000,000.00 400,000,000.00 300,000,000.00 200,000,000.00 100,000,000.00 - Appropriations/ Allotments Obligations Balances 2021 663,976,209.89 451,213,499.09 212,762,710.80 2020 631,987,339.84 401,200,431.00 230,786,908.84 OPERATIONAL HIGHLIGHTS In calendar year (CY) 2021, the Municipality implemented the following Programs/Projects/Activities (PPAs) as part of its developmental projects: PPAs Liloan Scholarship Program Family Congress TESDA ECD Projects Purchase of Veterinary Medicines, Vaccines and Supplies Coastal Resource Management Economic Support Program Our Sustainable Cebu Program Clean and Green Solid Waste Management Program Other Developmental Projects Repair and Maintenance of Drainage System (All Barangays) Repair and Maintenance of P.B. Frasco Sports Complex Repair and Maintenance of Public Market Expropriation of Properties for Public Use (All Barangays) Other Infrastructure Project (All Barangays) Total Amount (₱) Appropriation Utilization 30,000,000.00 29,676,000.00 100,000.00 56,869.75 100,000.00 95,220.00 21,300,200.00 21,239,000.00 50,000.00 49,800.00 2,113,610.00 1,976,895.00 100,000.00 100,000.00 2,000,000.00 1,506,825.00 1,000,000.00 999,725.00 8,000,000.00 7,941,214.00 4,910,391.18 3,830,586.26 160,000.00 158,947.29 250,000.00 203,065.00 50,000.00 49,875.00 45,000,000.00 35,769,747.60 500,000.00 347,921.64 115,634,201.18 104,001,691.54 SCOPE OF AUDIT The audit covered the financial and operations of the Municipality of Liloan for the CY 2021. The objectives of the audit were to (a) ascertain the level of assurance that may be placed on management assertions on the financial statements; (b) determine compliance of management with laws, rules and regulations on the pre-identified audit thrusts/areas and iii recommend agency improvement opportunities thereon; and (c) determine the extent of implementation of prior years’ audit recommendations. SUBMISSION OF MANAGEMENT REPRESENTATION LETTER International Standards of Supreme Audit Institutions 1580 requires the submission of written representations about management responsibilities such as the Management Representation Letter (MRL), which shall be issued as near as practicable to, but not after, the date of the auditor’s report on the financial statements. To date, however, Management has not submitted the said MRL due to the letter request of the Government Association of Local Accountants-Cebu, Inc. to defer its submission for reasons contained in that letter which was referred by our Regional Office to the Local Government Sector in the Central Office. AUDITOR’S OPINION ON THE FINANCIAL STATEMENTS We rendered an unmodified opinion on the fairness of presentation of the financial statements of the Municipality for CY 2021. SUMMARY OF SIGNIFICANT FINDINGS AND RECOMMENDATIONS The following are significant observations and recommendations in the audit and/or evaluation of the operations of the Municipality for CY 2021. These and other audit observations and recommendations which were discussed by the Audit Team with the concerned Department Heads in an exit conference on March 4, 2022 are fully discussed in Part II of the report. 1. Disposal of unserviceable Property, Plant and Equipment (PPE) under the General Fund with costs totaling ₱9,574,493.23 were not yet undertaken, thereby, exposing these PPE to further deterioration. We recommended that the Municipal Mayor demand from the accountable officers the return of all unserviceable properties and the Municipal General Services Officer initiate the disposal of the listed unserviceable PPEs. 2. Seven parcels of land with assessed value totaling ₱2,255,890.00 were not registered under the Torrens Title System contrary to the IRR of RA No. 7160 and COA Circular No. 92-386; thereby, exposing these to third party claims and land disputes. We recommended that Management secure and prepare all the legal documents necessary for land titling including those cited in the Annual Audit Report for CY 2020. 3. PPAs for preparedness, prevention, and mitigation with appropriation totaling ₱13,551,166.51 were not implemented within the year these were programmed resulting in low utilization of ₱1,539,526.76 or 10.20 per cent of the current appropriation totaling ₱15,090,693.27 contrary to Republic Act (RA) No. 10121. iv We recommended that the Local Disaster Risk Reduction and Management (LDRRM) Officer conduct judicious planning and scheduling to ensure implementation of its disaster preparedness, prevention and mitigation PPAs. We also recommended that the Municipal Mayor convene the LDRRM Council to review the current LDRRM Fund Investment Plan and assess whether the PPAs are implementable within the current year, and submit, if warranted, a revised or supplemental LDRRM Fund Investment Plan clearly specifying the PPAs therein to the Sanggunian for approval. 4. Public bidding of infrastructure projects with contract costs totaling ₱44,592,974.14 would take 176 to 378 calendar days, which is beyond the maximum procurement timeline of 141 calendar days, thereby, delaying the implementation of the projects and depriving the constituents of the benefits from the immediate use of these projects. We recommended that Management endeavor to improve the procurement time on the approval of resolution/issuance of Notice of Award, and the contract preparation and signing so as to observe the required procurement timeline as provided in the Revised Implementing Rules and Regulations (IRR) of RA No. 9184 and to achieve efficiency in the delivery of services to the requesting offices and the constituents. 5. The Bids and Awards Committee (BAC) did not adhere to certain provisions of the Revised IRR of RA No. 9184 or the Government Procurement Reform Act in the procurement of infrastructure projects with contract cost totaling ₱44,592,974.14, thereby, raising doubts on the conduct of the bid evaluation. We recommended that the BAC henceforth, strictly follow the Revised IRR of RA No. 9184 specifically on the conduct of detailed evaluation of all bids. 6. The Contract Agreement between the Municipality of Liloan and a contractor was not executed and the Notice to Proceed (NTP) was not issued prior to the commencement of construction of two road concreting projects with contract costs totaling ₱6,077,306.16. We recommended that Management stop the practice of allowing contractors to start the projects even before the execution of the contract and the issuance of the NTPs. 7. Liquidated damages were not imposed to a contractor despite the delay in the implementation of four infrastructure projects totaling ₱13,875,334.58, thus, precluding the Municipality to be compensated of the losses that may have been incurred as a result of delayed project implementation and allowing contractors to be unmindful of the timely completion of government projects. We recommended that Management impose the recovery of appropriate liquidated damages from the supplier/contractor, otherwise hold the official/s responsible for the non-computation of such liquidated damages liable. v SETTLEMENT OF ACCOUNTS As of December 31, 2021, the Municipality had no suspensions, disallowances and charges as reported in the Statement of Audit Suspensions, Disallowances and Charges. STATUS OF IMPLEMENTATION OF PRIOR YEARS’ UNIMPLEMENTED AUDIT RECOMMENDATIONS Out of the 18 audit recommendations embodied in the CY 2020 and Prior Years’ Annual Audit Report of the Municipality, 6 were fully implemented, 3 was partially implemented and 9 were not implemented. vi