DepEd: Not Right To Declare Laptop Deal ‘Anomalous’

Without a final report from the Commission on Audit (COA), it is not right to declare the controversial procurement of “pricey” laptops as “anomalous,” according to the Department of Education (DepEd).

In a statement on Monday night, Aug. 8, the DepEd welcomed congressional inquiries regarding the laptops purchased through the Procurement Service of the Department of Budget and Management (PS-DBM) last year.

“The DepEd believes that this matter needs to be resolved immediately, and we submit to the process as we commit to transparency and accountability – even if the issue only involves an audit observation memorandum, which requires the submission of documents to the COA,” the education department said.

“However, we urge ACT Teachers Rep. France Castro to be prudent in her pronouncements on this matter. The DepEd believes that it is not right to declare that the contract was anomalous without a final report by the COA, much less findings from the ombudsman,” it added.

Castro earlier pushed for an investigation into the procurement of laptops worth P2.7 billion, which the COA earlier flagged as “outdated” and “pricey.”

In its procurement request, the DepEd set the price of each laptop at P35,046.50, but the PS-DBM recommended a unit price of P58,300 for the same specifications.

State auditors said the purchase of the laptops decreased the number of intended beneficiaries from 68,500 to 39,583.

Meanwhile, former education secretary Leonor Briones maintained that neither she nor the agency had any hand in the procurement process of the laptops.

“It was the PS-DBM that directly had full control over the procurement, including pricing and item specifications,” Briones said in a statement sent to media.

“The only involvement I had was as signatory in the memorandum of agreement between the PS-DBM and the DepEd, where the PS-DBM was the sole procuring entity in an end-to-end capacity. DepEd was only the end-user. In short, DepEd had no hand in the canvassing, bidding and actual procurement whatsoever,” she added.

Briones also fired back at those who link her with any anomaly, saying she is already coordinating with her lawyers to decide whether she will take legal action.

“I am not hiding and you do not have to look for me. If you will say that I am corrupt, then you are so wrong about that,” she said in Filipino.

“I am confident that as former secretary of education, I will be vindicated of any wrongdoing. I am further very confident that the DepEd will be under excellent leadership of Vice President Sara Duterte,” she added.

The agency earlier said the question on the price of laptops is best addressed by the PS-DBM as the procuring entity.

Shortchanged?

In its latest statement, the DepEd also took exception to Castro’s statement that teachers are “binabarat” (shortchanged).

“The DepEd has always been proactive in promoting teachers’ welfare over the years. Rep. Castro should be reminded of the fundamental reforms that the DepEd made under the administration of former president Rodrigo Duterte,” it said, citing the Salary Standardization Law of 2019 and the executive order on Expanded Career Progression System for Public School Teachers.

In response, the Alliance of Concerned Teachers (ACT) said the two policies are the very proof that teachers are being shortchanged.

“The DepEd should be reminded that it was (former president) Duterte then who reneged on his promise, which he had made not less than 10 times during his term, that he will signifi-cantly increase, if not double, teachers’ salaries,” ACT secretary general Raymond Basilio said.

“Instead of fulfilling this as given to police and uniformed personnel, or upgrading teachers’ entry-level pay to Salary Grade 15 as with the nurses, what we got is a measly five- to seven-percent yearly salary adjustment for four years, alongside all other government employees, and a selective promotion scheme that maintains the base pay of teachers at SG 11,” Basilio added.

He also reminded the agency of the lack of compensation for teachers who rendered additional work in the past two school years.

“The DepEd should revisit its orders to see that it went stingy on teachers for granting a mere 1:1 service credit for teachers’ service rendered during enrollment and Brigada Eskwela, in-stead of the lawful 1:1.25 as mandated by the Magna Carta for Public School Teachers,” Basilio said.

“As such, the issue of overpriced and outdated laptops serves as salt to the wounds of our teachers who have been ‘binabarat’ for a very long time,” he added.

Failed repairs

In another development, a senior administration lawmaker  urged the Vice President on Tuesday to look into reports that the DepEd failed to repair classrooms even if the government already released about P9.5 billion for the project.

“Considering her solid record as a down-to-earth local chief executive when she was mayor of Davao City, I am sure Vice President and (Education) Secretary Inday Sara will not let this setback slide,” Camarines Sur Rep. LRay Villafuerte said.

Villafuerte was referring to another COA report indicating a failure to fix and equip with desks and chairs more than 75 percent of almost 11,500 classrooms across the country.

The Bicolano legislator is hoping that the DepEd, under Duterte’s leadership, could “put on the front burner the overdue makeover of almost 9,000 classrooms whose repair was already tucked in the DepEd’s Basic Education Facilities Fund (BEFF)’s P9.467-billion outlay in 2021.”

He cited as basis the COA’s 2021 audit report on the DepEd, which indicated that only 2,689 or 23.45 percent of the 11,468 classrooms funded for repair in the General Appropriations Act (GAA) were actually repaired last year.

“It was apparently a matter of low absorptive capacity and not a funding issue, given that nearly 80 percent of the repair budget had been obligated to the DepEd last year,” Villafuerte said.

He also cited the case in CamSur, where the DepEd failed to patch up more than 1,800 classrooms in Iriga City and 35 municipalities last year, even if the refurbishment of these facilities was already included in the allocations for the BEFF and the Quick Response Fund.

The lawmaker also disclosed that as of December last year, a total of P7.483 billion or 79.04 percent of the BEFF budget had already been obligated, leaving only P1.984 or 20.96 percent of the total allocation unused.

“In CamSur, a total of 1,405 classrooms in 296 schools in 35 municipalities were supposed to have received a combined BEFF allocation of P451.66 million last year for repair, but none of these projects was funded,” he said.

Climate education

The Climate Change Commission (CCC) has welcomed the DepEd’s commitment to strengthen climate education in the country.

“Climate change education is imperative as we develop our homegrown science and engage our children, youth, educators and education administrators in transformative climate ac-tions,” CCC Secretary Robert Borje said.

“A strengthened curriculum integrating climate change education is a vital step in empowering the citizenry in thinking critically and preparing for challenges of climate change,” Borje added.

He emphasized that integrating climate change into the basic education curriculum is one way to raise the awareness of children and the youth about climate change.

The DepEd earlier vowed to further strengthen its climate education initiatives to develop students and personnel “who are proactive in championing resilient and sustainable schools.”

It said climate change concepts are integrated in the K-12 curriculum, particularly in science, health, Araling Panlipunan, Edukasyon sa Pagpapakatao, mathematics, English, Filipi-no, Edukasyong Pantahanan at Pangkabuhayan/Technology and Livelihood Economics, and Music, Arts and Physical Education.

“While climate change concepts are already integrated with the K-12 curriculum, there is a need to strengthen its presence in the curriculum by refining learning competencies and stand-ards and monitoring learning delivery,” the agency said.

“The department is committed to reviewing learning competencies relevant to climate change education and coordinates various offices and experts with the enhancements needed in developmentally-appropriate and multi-disciplinary climate change education,” it added. – With Delon Porcalla