Requisition and Issue Vouchers [General Form No. 45 (a)] filed by Collection Officers to be approved by the Revenue District Officers

April 7, 1967 REVENUE MEMORANDUM ORDER NO. 36-67 SUBJECT : Requisition and Issue Vouchers [General Form No. 45 (a)] filed by Collection Officers to be approved by the Revenue District Officers There is a pressing need for the establishment of a systematic and effective control in the processing and approval of Requisition and Issue Vouchers [General Form No. 45 (a)] filed by revenue collectors, revenue cash clerks and deputy provincial treasurers designated as revenue collectors. From now on, Requisition and Issue Vouchers shall be processed and approved by the revenue district officer who has jurisdiction over the requisitioning officer. After approval of the Requisition and Issue Voucher, the revenue district officer shall forward, without delay, the said requisition to the proper division in the National Office. The approval of Requisition and Issue Vouchers from field collection officers shall no longer be the responsibility of the Chief, Collection Agents Division. The change in procedure is deemed expedient and necessary in order to avoid further incidence of the approval and filing of fictitious and forged requisitions particularly for accountable forms, strip and documentary stamps. cdi The requisitioning officer shall prepare a certified inventory of balances of all accountable forms in his possession as of the date of the requisition and shall attach said inventory to the Requisition and issue Voucher to serve as a guide for the revenue district officer in processing and approving the same as heretofore required under Revenue Memorandum Order No. 39-66 dated May 12, 1966. Immediately after filling the Requisition and Issue Voucher, the Chief, Property Division or the Chief, Cash and Disbursement Division, as the case may be, shall furnish the proper city/provincial auditor and the revenue regional director with a copy each of the Invoice of Accountable Forms (BIR Form No. 8.05). The copies furnished the above-named officers are indispensable references to enable auditing personnel or the members of the regional internal audit teams to determine the exact accountabilities of collection officers as of the date of audit. All revenue district officers are hereby instructed to submit, in three (3) copies, specimens of their individual signatures and initials to the Revenue Operations Head (Administrative Services). The Chief, Property Division and the Chief, Cash and Disbursement Division shall each be furnished a copy for their reference of the specimens, by the Revenue Operations Head (Administrative Services). This Memorandum Order supersedes Section 1, Chapter IX of the Manual of Instructions to Collection Agents and Collection Clerks and shall take effect immediately. MISAEL P. VERA Commissioner of Internal Revenue April 21, 1967 The Deputy Commissioner Bureau of Internal Revenue M a n i l a S i r : This is with reference to your memorandum of February 27, 1967 which was received only on April 11, 1967 by this Division. cdtech Please be informed in this connection that no requisitions for documentary stamps from the collection agents of Camarines Norte, nor from collection agents of other provinces for that matter, are kept pending in this Division. If ever they had sent their requisitions to this Office as allegedly claimed by them, then said requisitions must have been lost while in transit, or perhaps they may still be on the way as had happened and herein described with the enclosed evidences. A requisition for documentary stamps dated February 6, 1967 (copy attached) was prepared by Collection Agent Rizalina C. Abao of Talisay, Camarines Norte, together with a letter of transmittal of same date. It was sent by air-mail and by special delivery, having been posted at the Postal Office in Daet, Camarines Norte, on February 8, 1967. On February 10, 1967, the letter reached Manila and was stamped at the Manila Post Office. (See back side of the attached envelop). From the Manila Post Office, the letter finally reached the Office of the Revenue Operations Head, Administrative Services, on April 12, 1967. (See stamp dater imprint on the top of the letter of Collection Agent Abao). Subsequently, the letter with the requisition was forwarded to this Division after over two months since it was posted in Daet. The requisition was immediately filled up and the documentary stamps indicated therein were sent to the Collection Agent concerned, by registered mail, on April 13, 1967. For the good of the revenue service and relative to the matter, it is suggested that the Chief, Collection Agents Division, be caused to prepare a circular wherein all collection agents should be advised that in their next requisitions for documentary stamps and residence certificates only, duly approved by the Revenue District Officer of their respective region, the same should be addressed and sent by registered mail directly to the Chief Revenue Cashier, BIR, Manila. Such requisitions should be prepared at least three months before it is calculated the stock of said accountable forms will be exhausted. As it is, requisitions for documentary stamps and residence certificates prepared at the time the stock for them is exhausted, are forwarded by the collection agents to the Property Division or to the Collection Agents Division. It is not inferred here that the requisitions are lost there but very sure the resulting delay, if said requisitions are not lost on the way, will be blamed on the Cash Division. We do not want this to happen again and again, hence we have to adapt a corrective measure as proposed above. With the foregoing explanation we disagree to the accusation that " since July 1966, series of requisitions were sent to the National Office but all have been neglected up to the present ", and that said remark which, for all purposes, tend to degrade this Division, is baseless and unfounded. aisadc Very truly yours, JOSE G. INFANTE Chief, Cash & Disbursement Division May 8, 1967 MEMORANDUM FOR: The Revenue Operations Head (Administrative Services) This refers to the proposed revenue memorandum order on the subject of requisition and issue vouchers (G.F. No. 5-8) filed by collection officers to be approved by the Revenue District Officers, and the memorandum of the Chief, Cash & Disbursement Division to the Deputy Commissioner, dated April 21, 1967. The proposed revenue memorandum order would remove the duty of processing approving requisition and issue vouchers from the Chief, Collection Agents Division and would transfer the same to the Revenue District Officer who has jurisdiction over the requisitioning officer. The reason for the change is, according to the same order, "to avoid further incidences of the approval and filling of fictitious and forged requisitions, particularly for accountable forms, strip and documentary stamps." The memorandum of the Chief, Cash & Disbursement Division suggested the sending of duly approved requisitions for documentary stamps and residence certificate by registered mail directly to the former. OBSERVATIONS A synthesis of the complaints aired against the present system of requisitioning reveals the negative factors as red tape, misrepresentation or forgery and "graft." Any proposal, then, to alter the present system of requisitioning must have for its aim the elimination of these three negative factors. The proposed transfer of the duty of processing and approving of requisitions and issue vouchers from the Chief, Collection Agents Division to the Revenue District Officer will not, it is believed, avoid those negative factors mentioned. True, the proposed change will help minimize the filling of fictitious or forged requisitions, but it will, on the other hand, add to the present inconvenience and delay in the filling of requisitions. A look at the geographical location of many collection units and the station towns of our revenue district offices shows that there are collection officers stationed in remote, not easily accessible places who will find it more convenient and speedier to see the Chief, Collection Agents in Manila for the processing and approval of their requisition and issue vouchers rather than the local Revenue District Officer. It is our belief that no cogent reason or need exists for having the requisition and issue vouchers processed by the Chief, Collection Agents Division, as is the present practice, or by the Revenue District Officer, as is proposed. Without berating the efficiency of the revenue official concerned, it is our observation that the present procedure of processing and approving of Requisition Issue Vouchers in the Collection Agents Division is being done indiscriminately and undiscerningly. Requisition Issue Vouchers are presently processed and approved as a matter of routine and in a matter-of-fact manner. One has yet to hear of a requisition being disapproved in the Collection Agents Division for any pertinent reason. cdll PROPOSALS As an alternative to the present proposal, it is suggested: 1. that the processing and approval of Requisition Issue Vouchers by the Collection Agents Division be done away with. Instead the requisitioning of articles be made the exclusive official transaction between the requisitioning officer and the Property Division or the Cash Division, each in their proper cases. Requisitioning officer should address and mail his Requisition Issue Voucher directly to the proper division, without need of coursing it thru, for processing and approval by, any other revenue office or official; 2. that in each unit of organization only one should be designated as requisitioning officer authorized to requisition articles for the official use of the office. Such duly authorized requisitioning officer should file with the Property Division and the Cash & Disbursement Division a sample specimen of his signature and a "2 X 2" unretouched photograph for easy and correct identification; 3. that the Property Division be directed not to entertain personal follow-up of requisitions unless there is an exigent need for the requisitioned article and upon proper certification from the head of office that one is duly authorized to follow up requisitions. In no event must any requisitioned article be entrusted to any person for personal delivery; 4. that requisitioning officer should be required to prepare and submit to the Property Division every quarter of the year a certified inventory of balances of all accountable forms, as of the quarter, and a certified list of disposition of office supplies and office equipment. These data should provide the Property Division with an accurate guide for processing and allowing the filling of requisitions. Respectfully submitted: REDENTOR G. GUYALA Special Assistant Administrative Services Department