Under Administrative Order (AO) 15, dated May 25, the Chief Executive also transferred to the Department of the Interior and Local Government the authority to act on requests for vehicle purchases by local government units.
The Office of the President (OP) used to have the authority to approve such requests but was transferred to line agencies since they would be “in a better position” to decide on the request, Executive Secretary Paquito Ochoa Jr. said on in a statement
He said that AO 15 also reiterates the existing policies on the prohibition on acquiring luxury vehicles in government.
“Our objective here is to delegate the authority to approve the requests for the purchase of vehicles to the line agencies that are in a better position to determine whether the requests to purchase vehicles are justified,” Ochoa said.
He added that in the last 10 months, the Aquino administration saw the need to “decentralize a lot of procedures because so many papers need Malacañang approval even though we may not be the best office to process these requests.”
“For example, we could not see the purpose behind requiring OP approval for administrative matters like the purchase of vehicles by LGUs [local government units] in the provinces when there is an agency that is tasked to oversee LGU concerns,” Ochoa said.
AO 15 also directs government offices to account for all their motor vehicle units and to draw up a disposal program for all luxury motor vehicles, to be submitted to the Department of Budget and Management (DBM) in six months.
Under the new guidelines, the DBM has the authority to evaluate requests and recommend the acquisition of vehicles by departments and attached agencies, including government-owned and -controlled corporations and government financial institutions, but the authority to approve the requests rests with the concerned department heads.
AO 15 allows local chief executives to approve the purchase of “specific-purpose vehicles” such as medical ambulances, military and police patrols and fire trucks, road construction and cargo equipment, among others, if they would pay for them using their own funds LGU purchases of specific-purpose vehicles using national government funds require DBM approval.
