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Manila Bulletin devider Philippines devider National devider Ex-DepEd Sec Briones, 13 others ordered charged in P2.4-B 'outdated, overpriced' laptops bought in 2021

Ex-DepEd Sec Briones, 13 others ordered charged in P2.4-B 'outdated, overpriced' laptops bought in 2021

Published Jul 11, 2025 07:11 pm
The Office of the Ombudsman (OMB) has ordered the filing of criminal charges against former Department of Education (DepEd) secretary Leonor M. Briones and 13 others for the P2.4 billion alleged overpriced and outdated laptops purchased for public school teachers in 2021.
Aside from Briones, also ordered charged with graft and falsification were former DepEd Finance undersecretary Annalyn M. Sevilla, Administration and Procurement undersecretary Alain Del Bustamante Pascua, assistant secretary Salvador C. Malana III, Director IV of Information and Communications Technology Services Abram Yap Chai Abanil, Director IV Marcelo H. Bragado, Executive Assistant IV Alec S. Ladanga, Supervising Administrative Officer Selwyn Carillo Briones, Procurement Service (PS) Department of Budget and Management (DBM) Undersecretary Lloyd Christopher A. Lao, Director IV Jasonmer L. Uayan, Procurement Management Officer IV Ulysses E. Mora, Procurement Management Officer I Marwan O. Amil, Procurement Management Officer V Paul Armand A. Estrada, and private individual Froilan V. Domingo.
The OMB also ordered the filing of perjury charges against Lao, Sevilla, and Uayan while the same charges against Pascua and Malana were dismissed.
The case stemmed from the controversial P2.4 billion purchase of laptops for teachers intended for the implementation of the Basic Education Learning Continuity Plan (BELCP) from 2020 to 2022.
The Commission on Audit (COA) questioned DepEd in its 2021 annual audit report (AAR) why the laptops were "pricey, outdated" when there were cheaper and better alternatives available in the market.
More than 39,000 units were purchased at P58,000 per unit or a total of P2.4 billion. Some teachers reportedly “rejected” or “returned” the laptops as the units did not meet the specifications needed for them to carry out their functions.
Because of the alleged overpriced laptops, around 28,000 intended recipients were not able to receive their units.
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