Ni Jeffrey Damicog at Beth Camia
Umalma kahapon si Solicitor General Jose Calida sa pagsilip ng Commission on Audit (CoA) sa P10.7-milyong honoraria na tinanggap ng Office of the Solicitor General (OSG) noong 2017.
“The OSG has consistently acted within the confines set by law,” depensa ni Calida bilang tugon sa audit report ng CoA na nag-aatas sa OSG na ibalik sa pamahalaan ang nasabing halaga.
Natanggap, aniya, ng OSG ang nasabing pera para sa kanilang serbisyo sa mga kliyentyeng government agencies na alinsunod sa batas, partikular na ang Section 1(i) ng Presidential Decree No. 478 (Defining the Powers and Functions of the Office of the Solicitor General) at Section 35(9), Chapter 12, Title III, Book IV of Executive Order No. 292 (Administrative Code).
“These provisions authorize the OSG lawyers to receive allowances and honoraria for the legal services they render without qualification as to the number of agreements with client agencies and without limitation/cap as to the amount,” paglilinaw ni Calida.
