Hontiveros asks if CHED program funds went to ‘ghost scholars’; De Vera seeks details

Senator Risa Hontiveros on Wednesday said that her office has received almost 400 complaints from students saying they have not received their education subsidy, and suggested that the funds may have gone to “ghost scholars” in the Commission on Higher Education (CHED)’s scholarship program instead.

“Kasama dito, may mga reklamo na may mga ‘ghost scholars’ na nakakatanggap ng tuition reimbursement ng mga estudyante na naka-graduate na. So kung hindi ang mga bata, sino ang totoong nagka-cash in? Seryosong alegasyon ito na kailangan imbestigahan ng CHED,” she said in a statement.

The senator questioned CHED on its Memorandum of Agreement (MOA) with its attached agency Unified Student Financial Assistance System for Tertiary Education (UniFAST) and the Development Bank of the Philippines (DBP), saying that its P1 billion in funds has been "parked" since 2019.

“Alam niyo naman na may problema sa MOA pero bakit hindi niyo ibinalik agad sa National Treasury ang P1 billion na nakalaan para dito? Hindi barya-barya ang pinaguusapan dito.  Naibalik niyo na ba ang naka-park na P1 billion na ito sa National Treasury? Ano namang nangyari sa interest earnings nito? Mayroon pa bang ibang mga naka-park na pondo para sa libreng edukasyon na naka-tengga lang?” Hontiveros said.

“Maraming magulang at bata na hirap na hirap ang humihingi ng tulong para makapag-aral sila. Gusto natin silang tulungan pa, kaya kailangan nating siguraduhin na ang dagdag pondo na nilalaan natin para dito ay totoong pupunta sa kanila, at hindi sa sinumang iba. Stealing from our children is stealing from our future,” she added.

Hontiveros had earlier filed a resolution seeking an investigation into the estimated P7 billion worth of "leakages" flagged by the Commission on Audit (COA) on CHED's  implementation of the Universal Assistance System for Tertiary Education Act.

CHED to probe

In his response, CHED Chairperson Prospero de Vera said that the commission did not commit any violations, adding that he asked the senator to submit the names and documents so they can investigate.

“I think some of our legislators are seeing ghosts where there are not. There are always complaints on any social program of government and the best way to resolve that is to look at the names and evidence one by one and look at whether there are violations,” De Vera said in a media interview during the inauguration of the new Sotero H. Laurel Academic Resource Center in Lyceum of the Philippines Manila on Wednesday.

“As far as the commission [is concerned] there are no violations in the disbursement of all funds for free Higher Education,” he added.

“I have asked Senator Hontiveros to submit the names and documents to us so we can [look] at it one by one. But, we have not yet received any documents to investigate,” he said.

De Vera said the commission will track them as soon as the names and evidence are provided.

“So the only way to resolve it whether there are ghost scholars is to submit all the names with the evidence and the staff of CHED will track them one by one together with the school. It is very easy to accuse but we can only decide based on evidence,” he added.

CHED earlier said that over two million Filipino students benefited from the Universal Access to Quality Tertiary Education Act signed into law under the Duterte administration.

De Vera said that of this number, 1.97 million students in 220 state and local universities and colleges availed of free tuition and miscellaneous fees.

On the other hand, 364,168 students benefited from the Tertiary Education Subsidy and Tulong Dunong Program also provided under the Universal Access to Quality Tertiary Education law. — BM, GMA News