COA: Manila posts P3.57-B income

MANILA, Philippines - The city government of Manila, under the leadership of Mayor Joseph Estrada, posted a notable increase in net income last year, according to the Commission on Audit (COA).

State auditors, in a report released over the weekend, said the local government unit’s revenues went up from P1.46 billion in 2013 to P3.57 billion in 2014.

The COA lauded Estrada for such accomplishment, considering that in 2011, state auditors reported that Manila’s liabilities amounted to P3.553 billion as against available cash of only P1.006 billion.

The increase in net income was partly attributed to Manila’s efforts to reduce its number of employees from 13,330 in 2013 to 11,919 last year.

“As proof of the city’s commitment to reduce personal services expenses, steps have been taken in the 2015 annual appropriation, which resulted in the excess to be reduced by an estimated P550 million as compared to 2014,” the COA report said.

But despite the reduction in the workforce, which brought down expenses for salaries, allowances and bonuses, Manila still exceeded the allowed budget for personal services last year.

Records show that total expenditures for personal services in 2014 reached P3.77 billion, which was P821.25 million in excess of the allowable amount that can be appropriated based on the Local Government Code.