Manila: A party-list lawmaker has called for a joint motu proprio inquiry into allegations of ‘ghost beneficiaries’ in the Department of Education’s (DepEd) Senior High School (SHS) voucher program. Ako Bicol Party-list Representative Jil Bongalon is urging the House Committees on Basic Education and Culture, as well as Good Government and Public Accountability, to investigate reports that private schools have been listing non-existent students to exploit the government program since 2016.
According to Philippines News Agency, preliminary findings indicate that these phantom beneficiaries have drained millions of pesos from the education budget, compromising the program’s original purpose of alleviating overcrowding in public schools and supporting legitimate learners. “Hindi lang pera ng bayan ang nawawala, pati tiwala ng mga tao sa ating sistema ng edukasyon ay nasisira (It is not only the people’s money that is being lost, but also their trust in our education system is being eroded),” Bongalon stated in a news release.
The scheme, Bongalon noted, seems to have originated in 2016 during the tenure of then-president Rodrigo Duterte and has continued under his daughter, former DepEd secretary and current Vice President Sara Duterte. Concerns regarding inadequate safeguards and weak oversight under Vice President Duterte’s tenure were raised, which critics argue may have allowed fraudulent activities to persist.
Bongalon questioned why such a “ghosting scheme” had been allowed to continue for years, emphasizing the need to identify loopholes and hold accountable those responsible. The party-list lawmaker also mentioned that DepEd, under Secretary Sonny Angara, has already commenced an internal probe into 12 private schools across nine divisions for allegedly submitting bogus enrollees, potentially defrauding the government of over PHP52 million during the 2023-2024 school year.
He underscored the necessity for Congress to conduct a parallel investigation to devise measures preventing the recurrence of such schemes. A separate House inquiry, according to Bongalon, would ensure accountability not only among school owners but also within DepEd, particularly among officials who may have overlooked or facilitated the fraud.
Bongalon argued that a congressional probe would complement DepEd’s efforts, enabling the House committees to summon not only school administrators but also present and former DepEd officials. “Mas mabuti kung may masusing imbestigasyon mula sa lehislatura para malaman natin ang lahat ng anggulo, pati na rin ang role ng mga opisyal na dapat sana’y nagbabantay sa programang ito (It would be better if the legislature conducts a thorough investigation so that we can examine all angles, including the role of officials who should have been overseeing this program),” he said.
The SHS voucher program provides financial aid to qualified students enrolling in private senior high schools, aiming to support the education of deserving but impoverished students with subsidies ranging from PHP14,000 to PHP22,500, depending on their location. Bongalon stressed the importance of strict oversight of the voucher system to ensure that every beneficiary is a legitimate student enrolled in an actual academic program.
Fraudulent entries, he warned, distort data and misallocate funds that should rightfully benefit deserving learners. “Ang SHS voucher program ay magandang programa, pero kung madaraya ito, nasasayang ang budget (The SHS voucher program is a good initiative, but if it is being manipulated, the budget is wasted),” Bongalon asserted.
“Hindi biro ang pinag-uusapan dito – pondo ito ng bayan na dapat sana’y para sa edukasyon. Kung hahayaan lang nating tuluyang mamayagpag ang mga gumagawa ng katiwalian, sino pa ang sasandalan ng mga estudyanteng tunay na nangangailangan (This is no trivial matter – this involves public money that should be used for education. If we allow corruption to persist, who will stand up for the students who truly need support)?” he added.
