FACT CHECK: Angat Buhay program flagged for missing documents #FactsFirstPH

Rating: MISSING CONTEXT

This video (https://www.facebook.com/watch/?v=969657177018760) speaks of a 2019 article about the Commission on Audit flagging the Office of the Vice President (OVP)’s Angat Buhay program for certain deficiencies.

This is true, but missing context.

While the Commission on Audit did indeed flag the Angat Buhay program for an initial lack of oversight over funding as stated in the video, the context is missing.

The original article (https://www.rappler.com/…/232881-robredo-angat-buhay…/) talks on how the COA flagged certain deficiencies in the conduct of the Angat Buhay anti-poverty program.

However, the video removed the context and the responses of the Office of the Vice President. It gouged out the other side to upend the story but to take a free ride from the Rappler article to give it “legitimacy.”

Unsurprisingly, the video producer, Viral Philippines (@Bayral.Philippines) is unabashedly pro-Ferdinand Marcos Jr.

But back to the original article supposedly cited in the video. It says that the OVP has since not only pledged a review of the guidelines for selecting LGUs to assist, but also that the OVP has since clarified the selection process after the COA’s initial comments in the audit report.

The article itself also states that the OVP has taken the steps to remind LGUs to submit the documentation, which at the time of writing of said article, was still 6 months before the documentation deadline of that year.

The OVP also took moves to change the process for the LGUs.

Initially, LGUs submit a certification instead of an official receipt while processing the fund transfer (https://www.gmanetwork.com/…/coa-flags-ovp-for…/story/) as proof of receipt of allocation, and the ORs can then be submitted later.

However, in response to the COA’s initial audit report in April of 2019, the OVP has since revised its memorandum of agreement with LGUs to require the submission of ORs and other supporting documents in a bid to increase transparency and better monitor the utilization of funds in the program.