Sevilla 'surprised' by testimonies linking PS-DBM-DepEd task force to laptop controversy

Education Undersecretary Annalyn Sevilla on Thursday said she was "surprised" with testimonies dragging the Department of Education (DepEd) and the Department of Budget and Management-Procurement Service (PS-DBM) Task Force into the controversial purchase of "outdated and pricey" laptops for public school teachers.

During the continuation of the Senate blue ribbon committee hearing on the subject, Sevilla, task force co-chairperson, initially said  she did not receive any document on the two proposed memoranda of agreement (MOA) from Marcelo Bragado Jr., secretariat of the task force and the director of DepEd Procurement Service.

Referring to the document presented during the hearing, Assistant Secretary Salvador Malana III, vice-chairman of the task force, said it does not contain his signature and he has to check it personally.

During the previous hearing, Bragado disclosed that the MOA for the laptop procurement was only signed on May 28, 2021 or after the invitation to bid was posted and the quotation for the laptops were requested.

Bragado earlier narrated to the panel that the PS-DBM and the DepEd have a general MOA since 2017 for the projects that the DepEd transferred to the procuring agency. The task force was created to monitor these projects.

Since the laptop project has a different funding source, which is the Bayanihan 2 Law, Bragado said the PS-DBM officials and the DepEd officials who were part of the task force agreed that another MOA should be drafted.

This proposal has been debated by the DepEd and the PS-DBM officials from March to April in 2021.

Bragado repeatedly mentioned that throughout the drafting of the MOA, he was consulting with Sevilla and Malana.

Senate blue ribbon chairman Sen. Francis Tolentino pointed out that the sworn statement of Bragado is akin to a diary as it contains the details of the day-to-day transactions.

"The details and the personalities would be, could not be done [by] an ordinary person not doing this [on] a daily basis. If we give weight to a document written retroactively from a memory of a person, the details and the personalities, the events, the figures... could not be done by an ordinary person not doing it on a daily basis," he said.

2 MOAs

Tolentino then asked Sevilla again if she received the two proposed MOAs.

"Kung sa sinasabi ninyo na hindi kayo nakatanggap nito, hindi kaya and sinasabi niyo na ginawa lang ito ni Atty. Bragado to support his sworn statements pero sa detalye nito, eh baka kahit genius ka eh hindi mo na matandaan," the senator said.

Sevilla, in response, said they have records of documents that they receive, adding that it is better to provide emails that will support this but there were none at the moment.

"I dont know kung anong gusto niyang palabasin dito kasi yung organization ng documents niya, ngayon lumalabas, but in those times when im asking him, wala pong nasa-submit sa akin," Sevilla said.

She also mentioned that Bragado was just submitting Powerpoint presentations when he was asked to provide the physical documents.

At this point, Sevilla said she received a memorandum around April 29, 2022, which enumerates the three versions of MOA.

"I think [there was] April 29 memo from him na doon niya in-enumerate na tatlong version ng MOA ang kanyang hawak-hawak at dito po sa tatlong version ng MOA hindi niya po naibibigay sa amin ang physical copy. Ang lagi lang po sinasabi tatlo, service fee, trigger to transfer, and the roles of DBM-PS and the DepEd, which has financial implications kasi yon po talaga aang babantayan ng task force sa amin at yon po," she said.

"Ako rin naguguluhan na sa kanya ngayon kasi mukhang 'yung hat niya-- one is the Office of the Director of Procurement Service at that time, and the other one is the secretariat of the DBM-PS Task Force," she added. "And I'm really seriously surprised na dina-drag niya po yung PS-DBM Task Force dito na mainly mga financial person po."

At the latter part of the exchange, Senate Minority Leader Aquilino "Koko" Pimentel III mentioned that Bragado submitted to the committee a document -- dated April 23, 2021 and addressed to Sevilla and Malana -- indicating that the PS-DBM had proposed supplemented MOA that aims to cover new projects, including the P2.4 billion worth of laptops funded by the Bayanihan 2 Law.

"Ang ibig natin sabihin, you were asked as late as April 23, 2021 and then as late as April 29, 2021, yung sinabi niyo, you knew that you were still negotiating that MOA to govern the P2.4 billion laptop purchase," Pimentel said.

Sevilla said she was informed that there are still meetings ongoing but she was not personally aware of the status of the MOAs.

She added that the memo was given to them to check the financial implications. She told the committee she will check the responses they gave to that memo.

But Pimentel mentioned that Sevilla referred to a February 16, 2021 MOA in her affidavit.

"How do we now reconcile this? April 29, 2021 aminado po kayo nagne-negotiate pa... to govern the P2.4 [billion laptop project]. And then sasabihin niyo na anyway puwedeng matuloy dahil may mother MOA. Then sa sworn statement niyo submitted sa committee na ito, you referred to February 16, 2021. Do you see the contradiction there? Which is the correct version?" he asked.

Sevilla said what she was referring to in her sworn affidavit was the one received by the Finance Office, which she said was a notarized copy.

"I cannot have any other document to use for this transaction other than the submitted notarized MOA to us," she said.

Asked again if there was a MOA on February 16, 2021 to govern the laptop procurement, Sevilla said she is not personally aware because she is neither a part of the discussion, a signatory nor a witness to the routing of the versions of the MOA.

Tolentino then reminded all resource persons that omitting a fact or making false statements during the probe is punishable by law. —KBK, GMA News