Metro Manila (CNN Philippines, September 29) — It still remains unclear what the legal basis was for the procurement of allegedly overpriced and outdated laptops by the Department of Education (DepEd) through the Procurement Service of the Department of Budget and Management (PS-DBM).
“Mr. Chairman, clearly there is inconsistency in the statements,” Senator Sherwin Gatchalian said during the Blue Ribbon Committee hearing Thursday, after clarifying what the authorities used as the basis for the laptop procurement.
During the hearing, Ulysses Mora, then the chairman of the Bids and Awards Committee (BAC) of the PS-DBM, said he asked for clearance to release the invitation to bid given the limited time he had to implement the procedure. This, despite he only has a draft memorandum of agreement (MOA).
However, then-PS-DBM executive director Jasonmer Uayan, who gave the go signal to Mora, claimed he based the laptop procurement on a 2021 MOA.
A February 2021 MOA had been mentioned earlier, which former PS-DBM executive director Lloyd Christopher Lao initially signed.
In the same hearing, DepEd Usec. Annalyn Sevilla said the basis for the laptop procurement was a 2017 MOA also between the same agencies.
She noted a provision under the agreement stating that “blanket authority…on all procurements under the DepEd and DBM-PS will be governed by this MOA.” She also pointed out that such a decision was relayed to her by the procurement team and the end-users.
Sevilla said this was also the information given to her by the office of Marcelo Bragado, director of DepEd’s procurement management service.
However, current PS-DBM head Dennis Santiago said the procurement of laptops was not part of the MOA.
“So it’s illegal,” Gatchalian said.
“I would say that your honor,” Santiago replied.
Former DepEd Asec. Salvador Malana also said he only learned about the decision during the hearing, while DepEd Usec. Alain Pascua said they cannot give advice regarding such matters.
This is the fourth hearing regarding the laptop issue, which will still be followed by another one, according to committee chairman Francis Tolentino.
CNN Philippines correspondent Eimor Santos contributed to this report.
