Mandaue’s probe into incomplete shoes delivery gets going

Local

THE Mandaue City government has taken the first steps toward possible legal action over a P58.13-million school supply deal flagged by the Commission on Audit (COA) for the incomplete delivery of nearly 14,000 pairs of rubber shoes.

City Administrator Atty. Gonzalo Malig-on said the city referred the procurement to the City Legal Office for investigation following COA’s findings on 17,100 school supply kits intended for Grade 1 to 3 learners.

A transmittal letter from the Office of the Mayor dated Sept. 30, 2026, formally forwarded the matter to the legal office for appropriate action.

“There is already a folder for that, we will announce accordingly kay unfair man pod if mag-una ko, but naa nay transmittal,” Malig-on said in an interview.

However, Malig-on stressed that the procurement, delivery and payment took place under the previous administration in the first quarter of 2025, shortly before the May elections.

Mayor Thadeo Jovito “Jonkie” Ouano assumed office in July 2026, inheriting the issue that COA raised in its audit findings. Malig-on said Ouano received the audit report as the city’s incumbent chief executive.

The procurement, funded through the city’s Special Education Fund, covered 17,100 school supply kits worth P58,129,911. Each kit was supposed to contain a customized backpack, physical education uniform, rubber shoes, notebooks, writing paper, a sharpener, a pencil case and pencils with erasers.

The city paid the supplier P54,434,509.52 net of taxes through a Land Bank of the Philippines check dated March 27, 2025.

COA found that delivery documents dated March 21, 2025, listed all the required items.

The General Services Office inspector signed the inspection report that day, while the custodian signed it on March 25, allowing the city to process payment.

However, certifications obtained from recipient schools in February 2026 showed that the rubber shoes were missing from the kits distributed to pupils.

During a validation at three schools on March 16, 2026, auditors confirmed that the schools had received the kits without the shoes.

The Department of Education supply and property custodian told auditors that he initially assumed the shoes had been packed inside the backpacks. He also said he verbally informed GSO personnel about the incomplete delivery but could no longer recall whom he had contacted.

The supplier delivered 3,000 pairs of rubber shoes on Jan. 24, 2026. Auditors counted 60 sacks containing 50 pairs each, leaving about 14,000 pairs undelivered when COA issued its observation.

Under the contract, the supplier had 30 calendar days from receipt of the purchase order to complete delivery.

The supplier signed the order on March 5, 2025, setting April 6, 2025, as the deadline.

The contract also required liquidated damages equivalent to one-tenth of 1% for every day of delay.

COA described the delay as “a substantial and unjustified delay in the fulfillment of the contractual obligation.”

Auditors also questioned the city’s inspection procedures, saying the discrepancy “appears to have resulted from limited inspection of delivered items and reliance on assumptions regarding the contents of unopened sacks.”

The GSO inspector told COA that she opened only one sack during inspection.

After finding rubber shoes inside, she assumed the other sacks contained the same items and signed the inspection and acceptance report as complete.

COA said the city’s full payment despite indications of incomplete delivery did not comply with Republic Act 9184, or the Government Procurement Reform Act, its 2016 revised implementing rules and regulations, and the Manual on the New Government Accounting System for local government units.

The auditors recommended that the city require the supplier to deliver the missing shoes or refund the corresponding amount, compute and impose appropriate liquidated damages, strengthen inspection and acceptance procedures, and investigate the transaction to establish accountability.

During the audit exit conference, the city administration informed COA that it had referred the matter to the City Legal Office for investigation.

The city also committed to improving its inspection procedures and considering the imposition of liquidated damages.

Former mayor Jonas Cortes earlier defended Vice Mayor Glenn Bercede, who served as acting mayor when the procurement took place, and urged the public to consider the full timeline and supporting documents.

Cortes said government records showed that the 17,100 school supply kits had been inspected and accepted as complete.

He added that mayors rely on designated inspectors and property officers to verify deliveries.

“Dili man ang Mayor personally ang moabli sa matag sako, moihap sa matag sapatos, ug mo-inspect sa matag delivery,” Cortes said.

He also cited a May 21, 2026, DepEd document that he said recorded the delivery of the remaining rubber shoes and listed the undelivered balance as “None.”

Cortes maintained that Bercede should not be held personally responsible for deficiencies that were not disclosed to him at the time.(MyTVCebu)