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Senate minority bloc lauds Blue Ribbon report on DepEd laptop mess

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Sherrie Ann Torres, ABS-CBN News

MANILA -- The Senate minority bloc on Friday welcomed the findings and recommendations made by the Blue Ribbon committee regarding the Department of Education&#x27;s (DepEd) P2.4-billion laptop project, said to be overpriced by nearly P1 billion. <ul class="op-related-articles">	<li><a href="https://news.abs-cbn.com/news/01/19/23/senate-panel-finds-deped-laptop-project-overpriced-by-nearly-p1-billion">DepEd laptop project overpriced by nearly P1 billion: Senate panel</a></li></ul>Senate Minority Leader Aquilino “Koko” Pimentel III, in particular, strongly agreed with the panel’s recommendation to abolish the controversial Procurement Service of the Department of Budget and Management (PS-DBM), which assisted the DepEd in procuring 39,583 laptops at a price of P58,300 each. The original price was P35,046 intended for 68,500 recipients.<ul class="op-related-articles">	<li><a href="https://news.abs-cbn.com/video/news/01/19/23/senate-panel-recommends-raps-over-deped-laptop-mess">Senate panel recommends abolition of PS-DBM over laptop purchase mess</a></li></ul>For Pimentel, the Blue Ribbon panel’s recommendation to abolish PS-DBM should be done quickly.The President, in fact, can do abolish the PS-DBM all by himself, Pimentel said.“Congress can do this by law. Abolishing the PS-DBM, or the Office of the President can issue a document to repeal the presidential issuance issued by President Ferdinand Marcos Sr. establishing the PS-DBM,” Pimentel, in a text statement ,said.The PS-DBM has been entangled in corruption allegations in the previous years.Aside from the DepEd laptop project, the PS-DBM also became the center of Senate investigation in the “Pharmally deal” which centered on the government’s acquisition of medical supplies at the height of the pandemic.Senators also accused the PS-DBM of allowing “parked funds” from various government agencies so it will earn interest.Sen. Risa Hontiveros also agreed with the panel’s findings, especially on the filing of charges.Still, the filing of charges against the likes of former PS-DBM Executive Director Lloyd Christopher Lao, must not stop there, Hontiveros said.There are other corruption cases that must be also acted upon, she added.“I welcome the recommendation to file criminal charges vs Lao and other PS-DBM execs. Moving forward, beyond the filing of charges, it is also important to plug the holes through which these anomalies passed, hindi lang sa laptops pero sa Pharmally din at iba pa,” Hontiveros said.Panel chairperson Sen. Francis Tolentino meantime justified the non-inclusion in the charge list of former Education Secretary Leonor Briones.Asked if Briones has no liability even if she signed one document, Tolentino said: “Sa ebidensya pong lumabas, wala. Base sa ebidensya, iba po yung spekulasyon, iba po yung haka-haka. Iba naman po yung lumabas sa ebidensya.”

For Sen. Koko Pimentel, the Blue Ribbon panel’s recommendation to abolish PS-DBM should be done quickly.

Senate minority bloc lauds Blue Ribbon report on DepEd laptop mess

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Senate minority bloc lauds Blue Ribbon report on DepEd laptop mess

Sherrie Ann Torres,

ABS-CBN News

Published Jan 20, 2023 04:36 PM PHT

Read More:

Senate

Senate blue ribbon committee

DepEd

DepEd laptop project

Risa Hontiveros

Koko Pimentel

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