The newly-appointed executive director of the Procurement Service of the Department of Budget and Management (PS-DBM) said that the procurement of “outdated” and “pricey” laptops for the Department of Education (DepEd) may be illegal.
During the Senate Blue Ribbon Committee hearing on Thursday (September 29), Dennis Santiago noted that the DepEd went ahead with bidding for laptops worth P2.4 billion without valid authorization from the PS-DBM.
He also said that the memorandum of agreement (MOA) used to procure the laptops had been signed in 2017.
“If there’s no MOA, in as latest May, what is the basis for this procurement when PS-DBM started buying these items?” Senator Win Gatchalian asked.
Santiago responded, “If there’s no foundation or platform, then there’s no legal standing.”
“It’s not normal because as I mentioned earlier, before you commence your procurement activity, you have to have MOA already. Considering that laptop procurement is not covered, I cannot see how they could have used the 2017 MOA,” Santiago added.
On August 8, the Commission on Audit (COA) flagged the procurement of the laptops amounting to P58,300 per unit, whose budget was culled from Republic Act 11494 or the Bayanihan to Recover as One Act (Bayanihan 2). Under Bayanihan 2, DepEd was given six months to procure and distribute the laptops to teachers
However, former DepEd Secretary Leonor Briones said the agency had to ask PS-DBM for help with procuring the equipment as it could not do it in time.
“We did not invent this transaction. We calculated that we are already preparing for face-to-face classes, we may not have the time and the capacity to really look into the details of the offers of the various suppliers,” Briones said.
Meanwhile, former PS-DBM acting Director Jasonmer Uayan said that the procurement is still valid even though it used the 2017 MOA as its basis. “As far as I can recall, the 2017 MOA is not limited to annexes, nowhere in the body does it limit the procurement activities between posting, 2017 can actually be used for the procurement process.”
Marvin Joseph Ang is a news and creative writer who follows developments on politics, democracy, and popular culture. He advocates for a free press and national democracy. Follow him on Twitter at @marvs30ang for latest news and updates. The views expressed are his own.
