DepEd welcomes congressional probe on P2.4-B laptop purchase

The Department of Education (DepEd) on Monday said that it would submit to the process in resolving the issue of alleged pricey entry-level laptops purchased for public school teachers amid the COVID-19 pandemic.

In a statement, DepEd said it also welcomes the congressional probe on the laptops purchased through the Department of Budget and Management-Procurement Service (DMB-PS).

“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 Commission of Audit (COA),” the agency said.

In its 2021 annual audit report, COA flagged DepEd for the expensive laptops it bought for P2.4 billion that cut by nearly half the number of supposed teacher-beneficiaries nationwide.

"Based on the initial feedbacks we gathered from the auditors in the NCR and Cordillera Administrative Region (CAR), they stated that  the delivered laptop computers by the winning bidder are too slow because the processor is .... outdated; and the price is too high based on the specifications as attached to the DepEd Memorandum," COA said.

"Per available documents, the Audit Team could not ascertain the DBM-PS' basis for adopting the unit price of P58,300. Apparently, the supposed number of laptops to be procured of 68,500 units was significantly reduced to 39,583 units which was mainly due to the huge increase of estimated cost P35,046 to P58,300 anchored on the DBM-PS' recommendation, which was duly accepted by the DepEd," COA pointed out.

The purchase of the more expensive laptops than the ones on budget resulted in the procurement of fewer units, depriving over 28,000 teachers of the benefit, COA said.

Earlier in the day, the Makabayan bloc lawmakers sought a congressional investigation into the procurement of the laptops.

Under Resolution No. 189, Makabayan party-list Representatives France Castro of the Alliance of Concerned Teachers, Arlene Brosas of Gabriela, and Raoul Manuel of Kabataan called on an investigation by the House of Representatives.

The resolution directs the House committee on good governance to conduct the said probe in aid of legislation.

The Makabayan bloc lawmakers said that DepEd should explain why it agreed to DBM-PS’ recommended price even if DepEd, based on the COA report, also engaged the services of the DBM-PS for the procurement of faster model laptops with a price of only P32,500 per unit in June 2020.

DepEd had urged Castro "to be prudent" in her pronouncement regarding the matter.

“DepEd believes that it is not right to declare that the contract was anomalous without a final report by COA, much less findings from the Ombudsman,” it said.

“We also take exception to the statement that teachers are 'binabarat.' DepEd has always been proactive in promoting teachers’ welfare over the years,” it added.

The Education department further said, “Rep. Castro should be reminded of the fundamental reforms that DepEd made under the administration of former President Rodrigo Duterte—including the Salary Standardization Law of 2019, which assured teachers of an annual salary increase; the Expanded Career Progression System for Public School Teachers, among others.” -- BAP, GMA News