THE Balamban Municipal Government says all P76.17 million worth of in-kind donations for typhoon Tino victims reached affected families. It also admits it was late in filing the required reports with the Office of Civil Defense (OCD) and the Commission on Audit (COA).
Why it matters: COA’s 2025 audit found that the monthly reports were not submitted and that the donations were left out of the notes to the financial statements.
State auditors said the lapses undermined transparency and accountability in the use of disaster relief assistance.
In a statement posted Tuesday, Oct. 13, 2026, on the Balamban Public Information page, the Municipality said its social welfare and disaster risk reduction offices kept records and logbooks of the goods given out. It said emergency response and barangay relief work took priority over paperwork and that it filed the complete report with the OCD on April 22.
The donations were food packs, non-perishable goods, hygiene supplies and other emergency provisions. The Municipality said no cash donations were missing.
What COA found: The audit said monthly reports on the donations were not submitted to the OCD, with a copy to the COA auditor, within the period set by COA Circular 2014-002. An inquiry with the Municipal Social Welfare Office showed that no acknowledgment receipts were issued to donors, although all in-kind donations were recorded in a logbook.
The Municipality’s notes to the financial statements covered only the Local Disaster Risk Reduction and Management Fund, the special trust fund and cash donations, with no disclosure on in-kind donations.
COA said the documents Balamban provided were limited to summaries of donations received and distribution reports.
Zoom in: Balamban acknowledged “there was an administrative delay in the formal submission of the required monthly reports to the OCD and COA within the prescribed period under COA Circular 2014-002.”
The timeline: Typhoon Tino struck Cebu Province on Nov. 4, 2025. Under the circular, reports are due on the 10th of the following month, so the first one fell due on Dec. 10, 2025. Balamban said it filed the complete report with the OCD on April 22.
What’s next: Management agreed to COA’s recommendations. The municipal disaster risk reduction and management officer is to submit the complete reports to the OCD, with a copy to the COA auditor, and make sure later reports are filed on time. The municipal accountant is to disclose the in-kind donations in the notes to the financial statements, including the quantity received, distributed and remaining by category. / CDF