THE Department of Transportation (DoTr) had yet to pay out P58.84 billion, or nearly half of the funds it committed to projects and other expenses in 2025, as procurement and infrastructure delays slowed spending, the Commission on Audit (CoA) said.
State auditors said the amount represented 49.52% of the agency’s P118.83 billion in committed funds, citing delayed contractor claims, incomplete documentation, undelivered goods, late contract awards and work suspensions on infrastructure projects.
CoA’s 2025 audit report also flagged P7.9 billion in unreleased funds out of the department’s P139.86-billion budget because of missing technical requirements.
These included feasibility studies, environmental clearances and required local government resolutions.
The department received P131.96 billion in funds available for spending, P13.13 billion of which remained uncommitted because of fragmented procurement planning, implementation delays and overlapping functions.
The DoTr subsequently returned P4.24 billion to the Bureau of the Treasury, according to the audit report.
Auditors also flagged P1.07 billion in fund transfers that had yet to be accounted for, involving projects that were not ready for implementation.
Five foreign-assisted flagship transport projects recorded completion delays ranging from 4.33% to 87.76%.
CoA said slow project implementation and delayed loan drawdowns resulted in P294.42 million in commitment fees paid to foreign lending institutions.
“The government incurred P294.4 million in commitment fees in calendar year 2025 relative to its loan commitments with foreign lending institutions due to slow utilization of loan proceeds,” state auditors said.
Commitment fees are charges imposed by lenders on portions of approved loans that borrowers have yet to draw down.
Six other foreign-assisted projects failed to submit sufficient implementation data for the commission’s review.
Auditors also identified P907.1 million in financial reporting errors across 10 accounts.
Despite these findings, CoA issued an unmodified opinion on the department’s consolidated financial statements, meaning the errors were not significant enough to affect the overall reliability of the accounts.
The DoTr also had unsettled audit balances of P1.27 billion in suspended transactions, P1.4 billion in disallowed expenditures and P13.55 million in charges as of Dec. 31, 2025.
The agency’s management agreed to improve coordination, strengthen contract monitoring and align fund releases with project readiness, according to the report. — Pexcel John Bacon