Ex-DepEd exec charged over missing P6-M fund
A former regional director of the Department of Education (DepEd), who had been convicted of graft, is facing another criminal case in connection with a missing P6-million grant by a foreign government.
In a case filed on Oct. 16, the Office of the Ombudsman charged former DepEd-Region 9 director Jesus Nieves and chief accountant Marilou Toloso with violations of Republic Act 3019 or the Anti-Graft and Corrupt Practices Act and malversation as provided under the Revised Penal Code.
The ombudsman said Nieves and Toloso failed to account for the missing funds and were considered to have misappropriated or converted the same for their own benefit.
Bail of P70,000 each had been recommended for Nieves and Tolosa’s temporary liberty.
DepEd regional bookkeepper John Jacoba, state auditor Maydee Mandin and bank manager Norma Cabato will testify against the respondents, anti-graft investigators said.
Investigation conducted by the ombudsman’s field agents showed that in August 2007, Tolosa requested the closure of DepEd-Region 9’s account with the Philippine Veterans Bank (PVB).
The account – denominated as the Belgian Integrated Agrarian Reform Support Program (BIARSP) – was supposedly maintained for a special project funded by the government of Belgium.
The ombudsman said that upon the closure of the account, the remaining balance of P157.93 million was transferred to the DepEd regional office’s trust account.
In November 2007, Nieves allegedly authorized the bank to debit about P6 million from the trust account and transferred the amount to the closed BIARSP account.
On Dec. 3 of the same year, Nieves and Tolosa allegedly withdrew P6 million from the supposedly closed BIARSP account.
In November last year, the Sandiganbayan sentenced Nieves to a maximum of 18 years imprisonment for another graft and falsification cases filed by the ombudsman in 2015.
The case stemmed from Nieves’ purchase of P4.7 million worth of computer materials in 2006 allegedly without public bidding.