After being in hot water for its procurement of overpriced, Celeron-powered laptops, the Department of Education (DepEd) has spoken up about the issue. In a statement it issued on its official pages, the DepEd said that the Procurement Service of the Department of Budget and Management (PS-DBM) should be the one who should answer the issue of the said overpriced laptops for teachers.
DepEd adds that they only received the laptops from PS-DBM and found out from there that the laptops they received are vastly underpowered.
To recall, the COA flagged DepEd for its Php 2.4 billion procurement of laptops for teachers. The initial agency procurement request (APR) of DepEd was Php 34,046.50 per laptop, but PS-DBM made a recommended approved budget of Php 58,300 for each laptop. Of the Php 2.4 billion allocated, this was supposed to be made to purchase 68,500, but that figure was reduced to 39.583 units based on the recommended approved budget of DBM.
As a counter-response to DepEd’s statement on the overpriced laptops, PS-DBM executive director Dennis Santiago said in a statement that they would be conducting a thorough investigation on the overpriced laptops that were purchased during the previous administration.
“The PS-DBM, under my watch, shall fully cooperate to address the Commission on Audit’s findings and recommendations regarding the procurement of P2.4-billion worth of laptops for the Department of Education in 2021,” Santiago adds.
