Don Honorio Ventura State U did not comply with CHED’s fund transparency rules: COA

STATE auditors have flagged the management of Don Honorio Ventura State University (DHVSU) in Bacolor, Pampanga for non-compliance with guidelines set by the Commission on Higher Education (CHED) regarding monitoring and disclosure of tuition fee collection data in 2023.

CHED Memorandum Order No. 20, s. 2011 requires that budgetary allotment for instruction-related activities be at least 50 percent of tuition fee collected to be divided among the four key components of Faculty and Staff Development, Curriculum Development, Student Development, and Facilities Development.

But in its 15-page compliance audit released last month, the COA found insufficient monitoring data on the amount of collected tuition which posed difficulties in determining the propriety of disbursements made by the state university from its internally-generated funds.

“The University’s accounting system was unable to provide for the actual amount of tuition fee collected from settlements of overdue accounts of former students and subsidies received from the Department of Budget and Management (DBM) pursuant to the Free Higher Education (FHE) Law,” the audit team reported.

Collections from continuing students not covered by the FHE Law hand amounted to P44.06 million, with P29.31 million coming from graduate/masteral level, P7.27 million from doctorate level, and P7.47 million from undergraduate and vocational levels.

The COA said a detailed breakdown of fees collected is important to determine compliance with the mandatory percentage allocation requirement.

It added that the inadequacy of DHVSU’s accounting system may raise questions regarding misallocation or improper utilization of funds intended for instruction purposes.

The audit team’s review of the total obligations incurred by the university for instruction-related projects, activities and programs in 2023 showed a total of P564.73 million.

Of this sum, 55.38 percent or P312.76 million was spent on Facilities Development while 35.62 percent or P201.15 percent went to Faculty and Staff Development.

Student Development expenses only accounted for 7.13 percent of 40.24 million while Curriculum Development had a measly 1.87 percent share