P12.3B COA-flagged DepEd funds; ipinasasama sa impeachment

HINIKAYAT  ni House Assistant Majority Leader at Zambales Rep. Jay Khonghun ang House Blue Ribbon Committee na iasama ang pinakahuling findings ng Commission on Audit (COA) na P12.3 billion na umano’y unsettled financial transactions sa Department of Education (DepEd) sa isinasagawang imbestigasyon sa paniniwalang mapapalakas nito ang impeachment case laban kay Vice President Sara Duterte.

Sa 2023 annual audit report ng COA, sinabi nito na nabigo umano ang DepEd na maayos ang maraming bilang ng notices of suspension, disallowance and charge, na umabot sa P12.3 billion pagkatapos ng termino ni Duterte bilang education secretary. Tumaas ang halaga mula P11.4 billion noong 2022.

“The red flags keep piling up. First, it was P125 million in confidential funds spent in just 11 days at the Office of the Vice President (OVP). Now, COA has flagged over P12 billion in unresolved transactions at DepEd under Duterte’s leadership. This isn’t just an oversight—it’s a pattern of seemingly financial mismanagement,” ani Khonghun.

Inimbestigahan ng Blue Ribbon panel, dating House Committee on Good Government and Public Accountability, ang expenditure ng OVP na P125 million na confidential funds na nagastos sa loob lamang ng nasa 11-araw noong December 2022.

Lumitaw pa na 1,322 sa1,992 listed recipients ng naturang pondo ay wala o kulang sa birth records, na naging sanhi upang paghinalaan ang posibleng pagkakaroon ng pamemeke sa acknowledgment receipts.

Binusisi rin ng komite ang oaggamit ng DepEd sa P112.5 milyong confidential funds. Nadiskubre ng Philippine Statistics Authority na 405 sa 677 listed recipients ay walang birth records.

Ang mga naturang imbestigasyon ang ilan sa dahilan sa paghahain ng multiple impeachment complaints laban kay Duterte. Nitong Pebrero 5, inimpeach ng Kamara si Duterte.

Ayon kay Khonghun, maaaring hilingin ng House prosecution panel sa Senate impeachment court na ipa-subpoena ang financial records ni Duterte upang madetermina kung tutugma sa kuwestiyonableng financial practices ng OVP at DepEd.

“The COA report is just the tip of the iceberg. We need to follow the money. If the Vice President has nothing to hide, she should have no problem opening her financial records for scrutiny,” ani Khonghun. (Vina de Guzman)