Paul Rheynard Z.

Andeza February 13, 2022

Andres Bonifacio College BSAcc - 2 nd Year

FIELD RESEARCH AND INTERVIEW

For this activity, which is field research and interview, we were tasked to look for a resource
individual who works in an accounting field that involves IT. In my case, I opted to reach to my friend,
Sir Daryl L. Catubay who works for the Department of Education ZN as an Administrative Assistant III.
The interview was conducted on the 12 th of February which is last Saturday. Nonetheless, here is the
transcript from the meeting, which primarily states the Q and A portion.

Q: What is your occupation or profession as of the moment?

A: Basically, my major task which I am responsible of, is to prepare Disbursement Voucher for any
payments made such as salaries & incentives to teachers/employees, payment to internal creditors as well
as external creditors of the Division, using the Government Accounting and Financial Reporting System
(GAFR), wherein I am able to prepare journal entries and other data using the said system. Other tasks of
mine were to assist our accountant in delivering basic accounting services and preparing reportorial to
oversight agency regulatory bodies.

Q: What Accounting Information System is being utilized in your place of work?

A: Way back 2015 and the prior years, the Division of Zamboanga del Norte has been using the GAFR
database system, an electronic accounting report generating system that generates Financial Reports and
other necessary reports. Unfortunately, by the year 2016 the Commission on Audit (COA) issued an
Audit Observation Memorandum (AOM) that prohibits in using this system for it is found to be
unauthorized and non-compliant with the National Government Accounting System (NGAS) such as the
templates that contradicts with what the NGAS prescribes and therefore, it is in violation of certain COA
rules and regulations. But then again, as of today, the accounting office has been using it for the
preparation of Disbursement Voucher purposes only. Since then, the DepEd Accounting Office has been
preparing Financial Reports manually. With regards to the system, I cannot say anything much for my
view of it is limited as to the use of preparing DV only. All I can say is, if it happened that the COA had
allowed it for its usage (Disclaimer: COA had a valid good point), then financial reports would be easily
generated with just “one click” and tracing of errors would be done in no period of time.

Q: What Internal Control is observed at DepEd?

A: Well, in my own perspective, our (accounting office) internal control has its strongest point and
weakest point. Technically speaking, all the documents are in a series number, we also have subsidiary
ledgers, index of payments to avoid duplication of claims and for easy tracing. Secondly, each one of us
in the accounting office has its own accountability and responsibilities to our task such that we have to
check on the completeness of documents and check if the claims are proper. Systems and procedures
relative to accounting processes are in place. On the contrary, there may have been lapses along the way
due to inherent limitations such as human error, but there is always room for improvement. Also,
enhancement and/or improvement of the systems and procedures may be needed to be more transparent,
effective and efficient.

Q: What advice can you give for us, future accountants?

Answer:
o My advice for you guys is to keep pushing, keep fighting and we have to believe in ourselves.
There may be hurdles or struggles along the way, but have FAITH!
o If ever you will be in the position of an accountant, do not be afraid of changes, be flexible, be
humble always, have courage to stand for what is right, always seek to serve others, always think
for the benefit of everyone and continue to learn a lot of things, for learning is a never ending
process.
o Lastly, do not compare yourself to others but only to yourself, become a better version of yourself
each day. Do not give up on your dreams! For I know, YOU WILL BE GREAT ONE DAY! In
Jesus Name. AMEN.
o God Bless you and May God be with you on your journey ahead!:)))

The conducted interview meeting was great and it really went well. I did not only have fun with our
talk but I also gained a lot of knowledge and insights from him as well. I have pondered upon the taught
that the subject Accounting Information Systems is not that easy and hard at all at the same time. It is
easy when you put your heart and passion in trying to learn it, but it can become hard when you don’t
have the patience and perseverance to really instill the deliverables of this subject. More so, Sir Daryl
really imparted a lot of knowledge about the AIS within his workplace. Conclusively, this activity was
really helpful for me because I got a snippet on what’s the reality ahead of being an aspiring accountant.

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