State-run Pag-IBIG Fund again earned the highest opinion from the Commission on Audit in the presentation of its financial statements, top officials announced on Tuesday.
COA auditors, in a letter dated Aug. 28, informed the agency that it rendered its highest rating—referred to as an unmodified opinion—on the fairness of the presentation of Pag-IBIG Fund’s financial statements for the year 2019.
“This is yet another milestone in Pag-IBIG Fund’s history. Consistently earning the highest opinion from COA for eight consecutive years serves as proof that Pag-IBIG Fund—the Filipino workers’ fund—is being managed properly. We have been true to our promise of upholding excellence and integrity in serving our members and other stakeholders as we heed the call of President Duterte in ensuring that public offices, especially those that provide social services like ours, are corruption-free,” said Secretary Eduardo del Rosario, chairman of the Department of Human Settlements and Urban Development and the 11-member Pag-IBIG Fund board of trustees.
From 2012 to 2017, COA rendered unqualified opinions on Pag-IBIG Fund’s financial statements and unmodified opinions for the years 2018 and 2019. Auditors use both the unqualified opinion and unmodified opinion, which are the highest opinions that COA can give to a government agency or corporation, to mean that the financial statements of a company or agency are presented, in all material respects, in accordance with applicable financial reporting frameworks.
“We have been saying for several years that we have achieved our best year ever. But 2019 stands out as the most special. In terms of performance, we reached our highest ever net income of P34.37 billion. We also posted a record-high in housing loan takeout worth P86.74 billion which benefitted 95,276 borrowers, and in short-term loans totaling P53.83 billion which assisted 2.59 million members,” said Pag-IBIG Fund chief executive Acmad Rizaldy Moti.
“With our 2019 performance capped by this unmodified opinion from COA, this shows that we have achieved our best performance ever in terms of both numbers and the integrity in our operations. In 2020, with the economic slowdown, we may not see such record-breaking numbers but two things are for sure—first, the economic slowdown will not stop us from extending benefits to our members and second, we will remain transparent in our operations and in serving our members with excellence and integrity,” Moti said.
