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In this undated photo shows former education secretary Leonor Briones.
The STAR / Geremy Pintolo, File photo
MANILA, Philippines — The Department of Education (DepEd) said that all officials implicated in the allegedly overpriced laptop deal during the COVID-19 pandemic are no longer with the agency.
This comes after the Office of the Ombudsman ordered the filing of graft and falsification charges against former education secretary Leonor Briones and more than a dozen others over the P2.4-billion procurement of outdated laptops for public school teachers in 2021.
“DepEd reiterates its full commitment to cooperate with the Office of the Ombudsman in the expeditious and fair resolution of this case,” DepEd media relations chief Dennis Legaspi said on Saturday, July 12.
“The department is ready to provide all necessary documents, information, and other forms of assistance to ensure accountability and to protect the public interest,” it added.
In a 106-page resolution dated Dec. 2, 2024 but released only last Friday, the Ombudsman found probable cause to file graft and falsification charges against Briones and other former officials of DepEd and the Procurement Service of the Department of Budget and Management (PS-DBM).
Briones, former undersecretaries Annalyn Sevilla and Alain Pascua, former assistant secretary Salvador Malana III, directors Abram Abanil and Marcelo Bragado and executive assistant Alec Ladanga were among those ordered charged with graft under Section 3(e) of the Anti-Graft and Corrupt Practices Act.
Also facing graft charges are former PS-DBM executive director Lloyd Christopher Lao, former officer-in-charge director Jasonmer Uayan, and former bids and awards committee (BAC) officials Ulysses Mora, Marwan Amil and Paul Armand Estrada.
In the same resolution, the Ombudsman ordered the filing of falsification charges against Briones, Lao, Sevilla, Uayan, Bragado, Malana and Ladanga.
Lao, Sevilla, and Uayan were also charged with perjury for allegedly giving false testimony during the Senate blue ribbon committee probe into the procurement deal.
The Ombudsman’s findings align with the Senate’s earlier conclusion that the laptops purchased by DepEd in 2021 were both overpriced and outdated.
The units, which cost over P58,000 each, were supposed to aid public school teachers during the shift to remote learning amid the COVID-19 pandemic.
However, the Commission on Audit flagged the procurement for resulting in fewer laptops being distributed than initially planned.
The Ombudsman rejected the Senate panel’s view that Briones was merely “duped,” instead concluding that she had conspired with subordinates to push the deal and falsify the execution date of the 2021 memorandum of agreement between DepEd and PS-DBM. — with a report from Cristina Chi
