ON ALLEGED MISUSE OF FUNDS | ACT slams DepEd for avoiding ‘fundamental questions’

August 15, 2019 , 05:15 PM

(AUGUST 15, 2019) – The Alliance of Concerned Teachers (ACT) on Thursday slammed the Department of Education (DepEd) for failing to answer “fundamental questions” regarding its alleged misuse of education funds.

ACT said DepEd supposedly hired its own writers to produce textbooks, which “blatantly violates” the Textbook Law.

The Textbook Law, as amended by Presidential Decree 687 series of 1975, states that there should be an open and free competition among qualified writers for textbooks.

ACT also questioned DepEd’s alleged lavish seminars, despite accounts claiming that seminars were just conducted in schools.

When the seminars were held outside schools, however, teachers were “packed in sleeping quarters” with not enough food. “[P]rograms were also cut short one day before the original schedule,” ACT said.

DepEd said the supposed lavish seminars, which amounted to P300 million, was less than 10 percent of the department’s seminar fund.

The Commission on Audit in its 2018 report flagged DepEd for P13.9 billion worth of undocumented expenses and P2.7 billion in unliquidated cash advances.

“Why are there unused allotment and unimplemented projects when there are lots of shortages that must be addressed,” ACT added, noting that DepEd was only able to construct 11 classrooms out of the 47,000 target.

DepEd officials, for their part, said the irregularities found by COA are mainly due to unreconciled accounts due to delayed reports.

DepEd has also yet to explain why its learning materials worth P254 million were filled with errors. Textbooks worth P114 million remain unused.

“Why are there idle books in the warehouses when supply is very inadequate in schools,” ACT said.

DepEd on Aug. 14 said it will expedite the distribution of its learning materials stored in warehouses.

“DepEd’s explanations do not lay the matter to rest,” ACT National Chairman Joselyn Martinez said. “[It] is downplaying the issue and eludes the fundamental questions.”

“Teachers and students have been experiencing the impacts of shortages in the educational system since time immemorial. Now that DepEd’s fund management are put on the spot, we deserve a better explanation,” Martinez added. (Nikko Garcia/JMF)

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