Metro Manila, Philippines – A Congressional inquiry into the “ghost” beneficiaries of the Department of Education’s (DepEd) Senior High School (SHS) Voucher Program has been proposed in the House of Representatives.
House Assistant Majority Leader Jil Bongalon on Thursday, Feb. 27, pushed the committees on basic education and culture and on good government and public accountability to conduct the investigation.
Based on reports, the “ghost” beneficiaries have been listed as early as 2016 and millions of pesos in government funds have been wasted due to the scheme.
Bongalon noted the anomaly started under the leadership of then-Secretary Leonor Briones during the term of former President Rodrigo Duterte and continued under the helm of Vice President Sara Duterte, who served as education chief from 2022 to 2024.
“The vice president, the then-DepEd secretary, parang hindi niya po ito naging priority nung siya ay [this does not seem to be her priority when she was] secretary ng [of] Department of Education and probably may kinalaman sila dito [they know something about this] on why this ghosting of students happen during her tenure as the secretary of the Department of Education,” Bongalon told reporters in a virtual briefing.
“Ilang taon na pala ang ghosting modus na ito, pero bakit parang napabayaan na lang na magpatuloy? Kailangan nating silipin kung nasaan ang butas at sino ang dapat managot,” he added.
[Translation: This ghosting modus has been going on for years, but why was it allowed to continue? We need to see where the loophole is and who should be accountable.]
The DepEd has launched an internal probe on the matter. But Bongalon said a parallel Congressional inquiry is necessary to legislate measures that will stop supposed irregularities from happening again.
The Senate will also hold an investigation on the matter.
In a bid to decongest classrooms, the DepEd’s SHS Voucher Program enables students to enroll in private schools with the government’s support.
The agency said 12 private schools in nine divisions are involved in the “ghost” beneficiaries scheme.
