DepEd Officials Still Deny P2.4 Billion Overpriced Laptops Deal

Senator Believes Conspiracy on DepEd Officials Regarding Overpriced Laptops Deal

Senator Francis Tolentino believed that there is a conspiracy between Department of Education (DepEd) officials regarding overpriced laptops.

During the Senate Blue Ribbon Committee’s hearing on the P2.4 billion purchase of computers for teachers last year, some DepEd officials started pointing at one another once more. When Tolentino brought up the message exchange around the purchase of the aforementioned “exorbitant and out-of-date computers through Viber,” the finger-pointing started.

DepEd Overpriced Laptops

For individuals involved in laptop purchases, Tolentino initially characterized the communications as “extremely destructive.” However, the senator stated at the conclusion of the hearing that he does not wish to name any potential defendants in plunder and corruption cases.

Additionally, he needs to address the recommendations that might be in the committee’s final report he will present to the senators who make up the committee after sharing the papers he acquired with them. The COA official also discussed the comparison they made between the Chinese-manufactured laptops they bought and other laptops on the market.

Tolentino is also certain that the acquisition of stolen laptops was the result of a plot. It was disclosed during the aforementioned hearing that certain “non-teaching personnel” had also received laptops, in addition to those who had replaced their old ones, based on the report.

Tolentino wants to give the Senate plenary a copy of the final committee report by the end of November. He gave the named parties in the hearing 15 days, or until November 4, to respond to the accusations made against them.

He claimed he refrained from accusing them of denying them an equal chance to defend or explain themselves. Additionally, Tolentino has declared that he will refrain from praising anyone in his future recommendations.

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