The Philippine Council for NGO Certification is duly designated by the government as an NGO accrediting entity. Each year, millions of pesos are donated by corporations and private individuals to NGOs that are certified by PCNC. As such, the PCNC has a fiduciary responsibility to the public regarding the NGOs it has certified.
The PCNC Public Accountability System
Your vigilance can help uphold our integrity.
PCNC devised the Public Accountability System (PAS) as a clear process of investigating and acting on public complaints and feedback with the objective of ensuring that its’ member NGOs are accountable for the standards they have committed to uphold. The PAS invites public scrutiny on both PCNC’s certification system as well as PCNC-certified NGOs.
PAS Frequently Asked Questions
1. What is the PCNC Public Accountability System?
The Philippine Council for NGO Certification is duly designated by the government as an NGO accrediting entity. Each year, millions of pesos are donated by corporations and private individuals to NGOs that are certified by PCNC. As such, the PCNC has a fiduciary responsibility to the public regarding the NGOs it has certified.The PCNC devised the Public Accountability System (PAS) as a clear process of investigating and acting on public complaints and feedback with the objective of ensuring that its’ member NGOs are accountable for the standards they have committed to uphold. The PAS invites public scrutiny on both PCNC’s certification system as well as PCNC-certified NGOs.
2. Who can file a complaint with the PCNC Public Accountability System?
Anyone with a complaint against any member of the PCNC or the PCNC itself can use the system. This may include:
- A staff or former staff of the NGO
- An officer or former officer of the NGO
- Anyone who has direct or personal knowledge of the complaint
- Anyone who feels s/he has been aggrieved or negatively affected by a certified NGO’s actions or decisions
3. What types of complaints are accepted by the PCNC Public Accountability System?
Complaints relating to the NGO transactions such as:
- Board members receiving compensation.
- Board member engaging in business interest of the organization.
- Spouses/relatives holding influential positions in the organization without sufficient checks and balance or internal controls.
- Undocumented or unauthorized financial transactions to another organization or individual/s inconsistent with the programs/projects of the organization.
- Violation of applicable rules and regulations of government agencies which are relevant to non-stock, non-profit organizations such as: non-compliance with labor laws/regulations, non-compliance with SEC reportorial requirements, non-compliance with BIR/tax laws/regulations as determined by the concerned government agency.
Complaints relating to PCNC’s accreditation process.
- This may include misrepresentation in application for certification as well as falsification of records and documents submitted as part of application process.
4. How can I file a complaint?
- You can file a complaint in person, by fax, mail, email or via the complaint form accessible through the PCNC PAS website.
- Information pertaining to the what, who, where and how of the complaint will need to be supplied by the complainant. Refer to the Complaint Form in the PCNC website for more details. The completeness of the information provided helps in the determination of a complaint’s validity.
- The Complaint Form in PCNC’s website contains contact information (name, address, email address and telephone number) so that one can be easily reached in case more information is needed. However, these information will be kept strictly confidential. Anonymous complaints with obvious merit will also be reviewed and processed.
5. How is the PCNC organized to address complaints submitted through the PCNC PAS?
The Public Accountability Officer (PAO): receives complaints, determines completeness of information, seeks additional information from complainant and recommends endorsement to the PAB through the PCNC Executive Director. The PAO is under the direct supervision of the PCNC Executive Director.The PCNC Executive Director (PCNC ED): notes all endorsements and reports prepared by the PAO. She reports to the PCNC Board on the status of the PAS, and on complaints filed, and status/action on received complaints.The Public Accountability Board (PAB): is an independent body composed of 5 persons of high public credibility tasked with the responsibility of assessing the merit of complaints filed under the PCNC PAS.The Investigation Team: is an adhoc body expressly formed by the PAB with the assistance of the PCNC ED and PAO to gather data on specific cases.
6. How does the PCNC Public Accountability System address complaints?
- The PCNC Board first evaluates the complaint then forms an Investigation Team if the complaint is found to be valid.
- The Investigation Team gathers relevant facts, then submits the results to the PAB if there is a case.
- The PAB then decides on the cases brought to its attention.
The method of investigating a complaint shall be dependent on the nature and gravity of the complaint.
7. What kind of sanctions can be recommended by the PAB?
- The sanctions would be determined by the severity of the offense. Sanctions will range from warning, to reprimand, to suspension of certification and publication of offense in the PCNC website, to revocation of certification.
- The PAB will recommend to the PCNC Board the appropriate sanction based on its appreciation of the case. In determining whether an offense has been committed, the PAB shall apply the rules on substantial evidence applicable to administrative cases.
