The Commission on Audit and the United Nations Development
Programme (UNDP) formally launched the Manual on the Conduct of Participatory
Audit during formal rites at the COA Complex in Quezon City on January 21, 2003.
The Participatory Audit Project, a component of the UNDP-funded
project called "Enhancing the Public Accountability Programme of the
Philippine Commission on Audit (COA-EnPAP), is the conduct of state audit with
the involvement of representatives of civil society and/or private professional
organizations (CSOs) who are selected, trained and deputized as members of a COA
Audit Team.
COA Chairman Guillermo N. Carague and UNDP Resident
Representative Mr. Terence Jones with COA Assistant Commissioner Emma M. Espina,
Project Director, presided over the launching ceremony which also featured a
photo exhibit depicting the significant stages of the actual conduct of
participatory audit.
Commissioner Emmanuel M. Dalman and most other top COA
officials and senior auditors, other UNDP brass and some DBM and NEDA officials,
former COA Chairman Francisco Tantuico, Jr., Chairperson Pura Sumangil and other
leaders of the Concerned Citizens of Abra for Good Government and of some other
civil society organizations attended the event.
In his message, Chairman Carague expressed elation over the
success of the novel audit experiment in partnership with the Concerned Citizens
of Abra for Good Government (CCAGG) and the National Urban Poor Assembly (NUPA)
which he said has resulted in "very focused and efficient audits."
He lauded the completion of the participative audit manual
saying the book will prove useful to CSOs who may be interested in partnering
with COA as well as to people’s organizations intending to conduct audits or
evaluations of government activities on their own.
UNDP’s Mr. Terence Jones for his part described the project
as a "leading innovation" in Government-Civil Society collaboration
towards the enhancement of accountability and transparency in public affairs.
Underscoring what he called the growing consensus on the need
to create a socio-economic and political environment that meets the objectives
of good governance, Mr. Jones said "President Gloria Macapagal-Arroyo
herself has noted the expanding role of civil society in deepening democracy and
recognized the CSOs as equally ascendant in building a strong republic."
Mr. Jones congratulated the Commission on Audit, the CCAGG
and NUPA on the success of the participatory audit experiment saying that the
constructive partnership between them in the area of audit has elicited much
interest from the international community.
"We are pleased to have been your partner in this
endeavour and we hope to be able to share this experience to other partners
around the world," Mr. Jones said.
