BARMM education body probed for alleged fraud
CAGAYAN DE ORO CITY—The Commission on Audit (COA) is set to conduct an investigation into alleged fraudulent transactions of the Ministry of Basic, Higher and Technical Education (MBHTE) of the Bangsamoro Autonomous Region in Muslim Mindanao (BARMM) amounting to some P2.22 billion.
COA Chair Gamaliel Cordoba wrote to BARMM Chief Minister Abdulraof Macacua on Aug. 11, informing him of the complaints against MBHTE Minister Mohagher Iqbal that the agency received.
The complaints involved the alleged anomalous disbursements of P1.77 billion for payments made in a single day “through issuance of checks to individual personnel, including the cashier.”
Such disbursements allegedly bypassed the MBHTE Finance Division which is expected to conduct a standard review of the transactions as a matter of oversight.
Another transaction is the payment of P449.24 million “to a single supplier under questionable circumstances.”
Previously, several people, who acted as anonymous whistleblowers on social media, claimed the transactions involved the procurement of kits for learners and teachers, distributed to schools throughout the region under the MBHTE’s Project Iqbal (Improve Quality Education in the Bangsamoro Land).
Cordoba said an initial review by concerned COA offices found that the complaints “merited the conduct of a special audit.”
“In line with the Commission’s constitutional mandate, we are already in the process of constituting a special audit team to audit the subject transactions,” Cordoba told Macacua.
“We respectfully request your assistance for the audit team for the entire duration of the audit,” the COA chair said.
‘Baseless’
On Wednesday, the Bangsamoro government confirmed receipt of Cordoba’s letter and assured the public it would take the matter seriously.
“As an institution with a shared commitment to uphold integrity, we in the Bangsamoro government recognize the constitutional authority of COA and will fully cooperate and provide assistance throughout the entire audit process,” read the statement, attributed to the BARMM spokesperson.
“We will take these matters seriously and we will continue to act with diligence, fairness and in the best interest of the Bangsamoro,” it said.
The Inquirer sought Iqbal’s comment on the matter but he had yet to respond to the request as of press time Wednesday.
In June, as the accusations spread on social media, Iqbal brushed these aside as “baseless.”
He assured that the MBHTE’s procurement process “is transparent, accountable, and consistently subjected to post-audit by [the] COA.”
Iqbal pointed to the fraud claims on the P1.77-billion transaction as “grossly misleading and ignore[d] the layered controls within our financial system.”
Biggest budget
He said then that they were already “initiating an internal fact-finding investigation” to verify the claims. “Rest assured we will not hesitate to hold any individual accountable, regardless of rank or affiliation, should wrongdoing be established,” Iqbal said.
So far, the MBHTE has not made public the result of such internal investigation.
The amount of the questioned transactions is the largest among several allegations against the MBHTE, which manages the biggest budget in the Bangsamoro government at more than P36 billion.
Official statistics showed that the region has the country’s highest illiteracy rate.
Sources within the COA, who asked not to be identified for lack of authority to speak to reporters, said several witnesses had submitted sworn statements detailing alleged irregularities within the ministry.
The MBHTE has long faced accusations of corruption, including reports of selling teaching positions to aspiring educators, a controversy that surfaced last year. This prompted Iqbal to order an investigation, but its results have yet to be made public by the MBHTE. —WITH REPORTS FROM DREMA QUITAYEN-BRAVO AND EDWIN O. FERNANDEZ
