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Manila Bulletin devider Philippines devider Caloocan execs ready to face graft complaints before Ombudsman

Caloocan execs ready to face graft complaints before Ombudsman

Published Jun 3, 2021 12:45 pm

A Caloocan City official said he is ready to face graft complaints filed against him and three others before the Office of the Ombudsman (OMB).

City administrator Oliver Hernandez said the local government has proof that the city's purchase of smart tablets for students worth P320 million underwent a proper bidding process contrary to allegations made against them by three city councilors belonging to the opposition party.

“Kami po ay nakahanda na ipakita ang lahat ng dokumento. In fact, meron po kaming mga video ng mga proceedings (We're ready to present all the documents. In fact, we have several videos taken during the proceedings),” Hernandez told DZRH in an interview.

“Anytime, kapag hiningi po ng Ombudsman o ng court, ready po kami ilabas yan (Any time, if the Ombudsman or the Court asks, we are ready to present the documents),” he added.

Hernandez is among four individuals facing graft complaints filed by City Councilors Christopher Malonzo, Marylou San Buenaventura, and Alexander Mangasar before the OMB on Wednesday. The others are Mayor Oca Malapitan, city treasurer Analiza Mendiola and Department of Education Undersecretary Alain del Pascua.

The complainants alleged that the tablets that were given away to public school students for online learning amid COVID-19 pandemic “without public bidding” were overpriced and did not reportedly meet the minimum specifications required by the Department of Education (DepEd). The chosen tablet brand, a Cherry Cosmos 7, was not even commercially available in the market, they also alleged.

Hernandez said the Invitation to Bid (ITB) was even published in a national newspaper and on the Philippine Government Electronic Procurement System (PhilGeps) which debunks the allegation that the project did not have a proper bidding process.

He added that the complainants' lawyers would have known about the ITB if they had done "due diligence" in researching.

"So yung kanilang akusasyon na walang bidding na naganap, napakamali po noon (So their accusation that no bidding happened was wrong). It's a political harassment lang," he said, adding that he believes the three councilors wanted a higher position in the city government since election season is almost about to start.

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students tablet Ombudsman graft Caloocan City
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