PINAGSABIHAN ni Senate Minority Leader Franklin Drilon ang Technical Education and Skills Development Authority na linawin ang mga kinukuwestyong pondo ng Commission on Audit laban sa ahensya.

Tinukoy ni Drilon ang paglilipat ng TESDA ng P160 milyong pondo sa anti-insurgency task force na ibinabala nitong maaaring maging kaso ng malversation of public fund.

Sa Senate budget deliberations sa proposed 2022 budget ng TESDA, binuhay ni Drilon ang COA audit findings na maaaring papanagutin ang ahensya sa technical malversation of funds dahil sa paglilipat ng P160,083,401 fund sa National Task Force to End Local Communist Armed Conflict nang walang batayan.

Bilang tugon kay Drilon, sinabi ni Senador Joel Villanueva na batay na rin sa pahayag ni TESDA Director General Isidro Lapeña, isinasaayos na nila ang audit finding ng COA.

Ipinaliwanag ni Villanueva na alinsunod sa Circular No. 11 series 202 na polisiya para sa scholarship programs, sinusuportahan ang NTF-ELCAC sa ilalim ng Executive Order 70 bilang legal basis sa fund transfer.

“In support of the National TESDA Plan, strategic plan for social equity and poverty reduction, the provision of TESDA’s programs and services, particularly scholarship programs to special clients, have been given priority. As such, in TESDA circular no. 11 series 2020 dated January 23, 2020 or Omnibus guidelines for TESDA scholarship programs for special clients,” pahayag ni Villanueva, chairman ng Senate committee of Higher, Technical and Vocational Education.

“The above mentioned guidelines also included the implementation of a special skills training program which was established in support of EO 70 to address the needs of indigenous peoples and former rebels and commission combatants of Moro Islamic Liberation Front,” dagdag ni Villanueva.

Subalit iginiit ni Drilon na hindi kuntento ang COA sa circular at iginiit na hindi ito sapat na batayan.

“If it was already there obviously, COA did not find it to be a sufficient basis. Because the withstanding circular no. 11 is still flagged and that P160 million has been released without any basis,” diin ni Drilon.

Binigyang-diin pa ni Drilon na kahit nailabas na ang circular, nanindigan ang COA na may batayan para sa serious criminal offense na malversation of public funds.

Iginiit naman ni Villanueva na nakikipag-ugnayan na ang TESDA sa COA para linawin ang fund transfer.

Dahil hindi makuntento sa paliwanag si Drilon, iginiit nito na dapat nang pag-aralan ng Ombudsman ang posibilidad ng malversation of funds ng TESDA.

“You know, I do not see this kind of warning very often. This is punishable under Article 220 of Revised Penal Code for technical malversation and I would strongly suggest that this matter be settled in order that the Ombudsman will not take it up in technical malversation against the management,” diin ni Drilon. (DANG SAMSON-GARCIA)