Department of Education regional director Victoriano Tirol denied that the information technology package bought from the Priority Development Fund of Bacolod Rep. Monico Puentevella was overpriced as charged by a Bacolod mediaman who filed a complaint with the Sangguniang Panlungsod.

Tirol said instructional media is really expensive and these are not available in the Philippines since these are imported through a sole distributor. He also said the DepEd bought the instructional materials for English, Mathematics and Science and other packages and these packages are patented, warranted, branded and bought from a sole distributor.

"The computer is not the principal object here but it is an accessory for these intellectual property in the CD's, which are the ones that are expensive. It is not the computer that is being bought but the instructional materials," he said.

Tirol said DepEd is responsible for the bidding of the IT learning package and that the Office of Puentevella had nothing to do with the bidding and awarding of the project.

He said Bacolod City students, who are recipients of the program, are very lucky to have been given the opportunity to learn. "Since we are already left behind by other countries we are now trying to catch up with them," he said.

RADIOMAN'S COMPLAINT Meanwhile, City Legal Officer 3 Vicente Petierre III said he and his fellow lawyers just did their part to conduct an investigation on the complaint filed by RGMA Super Radyo broadcaster Donard Nojas.

Nojas said Puentevella has allocated and spent P10.4 million in 2002, P15.2 million in 2004, and P13.2 million in 2005 from his PDAF for the purchase of IT equipment for various public elementary and high schools in the city.

He also said records from the Department of Budget and Management showed that 38 public schools in 2004 and 33 in 2005 each received a package consisting of only two computers and accessories worth P400,000 respectively.

Petierre, together with lawyers Gliceria Caduhada, Bartolome Malde and Danny Pondevilla, were directed by City Legal Officer Allan Zamora to investigate the allegation of Nojas and to submit a report after the investigation.

PROBE FINDINGS

Petierre said they have found out that at the SPED, Education and Training Center School and Rizal Elementary School there were IT packages that had no printers, UPS and other accessories.

He said the principals of the schools they visited complained that they were not able to use the computer package delivered to them. One had to be converted or programmed to make it compatible with the Windows program installed in the computers, he added.

Petierre said some teachers claimed that there are units for viewing purposes only. He said SPED is seeking assistance in order to have the computers fixed. He said that, as regular employees, they just followed the order of the City Legal Officer to investigate the complaint and are not giving any conclusion whether the computer package is expensive or not based on the amount of P400,000.

Petierre said they will submit their findings from their investigation as they have been instructed to do.*CGS

back to top