Ex-Tesda chief Syjuco charged with graft anew

Former Technical Education and Skills Development Authority (Tesda) Director General Augusto Syjuco Jr. has been charged again in the Sandiganbayan, this time in connection with an anomalous P30-million computerization project.

Ombudsman prosecutors charged Syjuco and seven others with one count of violating Section 3(e) of the Anti-Graft and Corrupt Practices Act for causing undue injury to the government and giving unwarranted benefits to supplier Prime Logic Corp. (PLC).

The case concerned the October 2007 contract for the Integrated TVET (Technical and Vocational Education and Training) Management System through the e-Tesda portal.

Prosecutors alleged that “several procurement irregularities and instances of fraud” attended the transaction.

IRR violation

For one, the bid invitation posted by the bids and awards committee (BAC) in the newspapers did not indicate the budget for the contract, fund source, contract duration and delivery schedule, in violation of Section 21 of the implementing rules and regulation (IRR) of the Government Procurement Reform Act.

The Tesda BAC also failed to require the inclusion of three to five short-listed consultants in the selection of prospective bidders, in violation of the procurement law.

Prosecutors also claimed that PLC was “technically and financially unqualified” to take on the electronic portal project.

There was allegedly no valid source of funds or prior appropriation for the project, contrary to the certification of budget division officer in charge Annabelle Quimbo.

Besides Syjuco and Quimbo, Tesda officials charged with the same offense were accounting division chief Guillermina Aguilar, BAC chair Teodoro Sanico, and BAC members Buen Mondejar and Ernesto Beltran.

Alleged overpricing

Also indicted were PLC president Jason dela Rosa and representative Emily Pacquing.

Syjuco’s other cases involving his stint as Tesda chief include the alleged overpricing of education materials by P61 million and the alleged anomalies in the award of P79.9 million in scholarships.

As former representative of Iloilo’s second district, Syjuco was also charged with allowing a nongovernment organization (NGO) he founded to misuse P5.3 million in funds, and letting another NGO to implement a P5-million fertilizer fund project instead of the beneficiary municipality.