DEPARTMENT of Education’s explanations on the findings of the Commission on Audit (COA) regarding irregularities on the agency’s fund use do not absolve DepEd of accountability on the matter. The department is downplaying the issue and eludes the fundamental questions.
DepEd officials said that the found irregularities are mainly due to unreconciled accounts because of delays in reports. They said the P300-million expenses on “lavish seminars” flagged by COA is less than 10 percent of the agency seminar fund. Education officials further explained that the P113 million worth of undistributed books are buffer stocks for calamities while the P254 million worth of error-filled books only have grammatical and semantics errors in the main. Secretary Leonor Briones further questioned COA’s editorial authority on textbooks.
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.
The following fundamental questions were not addressed by the explanations offered by DepEd:
1. Which seminars were found by COA as “lavish,” given numerous experiences of teachers that many seminars were only done in schools or either in hotels were they were packed in sleeping quarters, there are not enough food, or programs were cut short one day before the original schedule?
2. Why are there unused allotment and unimplemented projects when there are lots of shortages that must be addressed?
3. Why was DepEd only able to construct 11 classroom out of the 47,000 target?
4. Why are there idle books in the warehouses when supply is very inadequate in schools?
5. Why are there no official DepEd textbooks for a number subjects, especially in Filipino and Araling Panlipunan, as well as most of the textbooks needed for Grade 6 subjects?
6. Why did DepEd opt to get its own writers and produce its own textbooks when such process blatantly violates the Textbook Law?
7. How come there are ‘ghost beneficiaries’ of vouchers for Senior High School?
The Education secretary is trying to skirt the issue by saying that the matter was “only highlighted for drama.”
It is irresponsible for the Education chief to throw sarcasm at a legitimate demand to account the public funds. She once accused teachers of being dramatic when the issue of toilet-turned-faculty rooms was exposed. Sarcasm does not answer the questions nor solve DepEd problems. What’s needed is accountability and concrete solutions.
Presidential Spokesperson Salvador Panelo said the President has full confidence that Briones will not allow corruption in her agency. This quick defense is disappointing. Trust and confidence in a democracy is best ensured through healthy checks and balance and not through blind faith on persons. COA has done its part of the job. The President must do his by checking on the sentiments of teachers on the ground.
