House panel to probe P8-B DepEd laptop deal

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MANILA, Philippines — A House of Representatives panel on Monday issued a subpoena for the Department of Education’s (DepEd) bidding documents during Vice President Sara Duterte’s stint as agency head following allegations of irregularities in the procurement of P8 billion worth of laptop computers in which the government could have saved P1.6 billion.

During Monday’s briefing for the DepEd’s proposed P793.18-billion 2025 budget, the committee on appropriations issued subpoena duces tecum requiring the agency to produce all bidding documents from 2022 to 2024, including the acceptance of and feedback from the end-users, on the procurement of laptops.

READ: Solons blast low budget use, non-delivery of laptops of DepEd under Sara

Batangas Rep. Gerville Luistro moved to include feedback, particularly from teachers, about the DepEd’s computerization program, pointing out, “because I surmise the delivered computers might not be in good condition anymore.”

The lawmaker noted that out of 16 lots up for bidding, only two were awarded and the remaining 14 were rebid, which meant reverting to the first step of the procurement process of publishing the notice to bid.

“I wish to manifest as well that if we are able to establish findings based on the documents to be submitted to us, then I recommend that we initiate a separate investigation on this,” she said.

Suspicious

Luistro had sought the issuance of the subpoena duces tecum after House Assistant Majority Leader Raul Angelo Bongalon alleged a “conspiracy” in the bidding of laptops and other public school equipment during Duterte’s term as education secretary.

Bongalon, Ako Bicol party list representative and appropriations panel vice chair, alleged that the “conspiracy” could have involved former DepEd Undersecretaries Michael Wesley Poa and Gloria Mercado as well as former Assistant Secretary Francis Bringas, who all left after Duterte’s resignation from the agency. Poa is currently the spokesperson of the Office of the Vice President, while Mercado availed herself of early retirement.

The Inquirer sought Poa but did not receive a reply at press time on Monday.

According to Bongalon, there were irregularities in the procurement process where items were bid and rebid, with the same bidders participating, and claimed in Filipino, “those involved in the conspiracy were members of the bidding and awards committee and the procurement officials supervising them.”

Same bidders

He pointed out that based on the bids submitted in the initial bidding, there was a price variance of 24 percent, which meant the government could have saved P1.6 billion.

He noted that in the second bidding, in which the same bidders took part, the price variance became 1 percent.

“This means the price [of the items] increased. For me, this was a rigged bidding,” the lawmaker charged.

“There was already a bidding. What I don’t understand is why it was discontinued. The government could have saved P1.6 billion [if the first bidding pushed through]. Let’s say a laptop is worth P100,000 each. How many laptops could that have bought?” Bongalon noted.

Gerard Chan, DepEd undersecretary for procurement, said that the first bidding failed because the bidders submitted incomplete documents and attributed the price variations to the likelihood of bidding participants correcting their documents and causing the price changes.

Chan pointed out that Mercado, Poa, and Bringas handled the procurement process before he assumed his current post at DepEd.