The head of the Commission on Higher Education (CHEd) is facing criminal charges
A suspended official from the Commission on Higher Education (CHEd) has lodged graft and corruption as well as grave abuse of authority charges against the agency’s chairman, Prospero de Vera 3rd, with the Office of the Ombudsman.
In a five-page complaint submitted on Tuesday, CHEd Commissioner Aldrin Darilag accused de Vera of displaying favoritism toward a supplier, alleging that his superior urged him to support the supplier despite its lack of qualifications.
According to Darilag’s sworn statement, “Respondent De Vera would like me to support Aspen as a supplier of CHED even though it did not comply with the requirements stipulated in Republic Act 9184, otherwise known as the procurement law. He even asked me to have a meeting with Aspen representatives, which I refused to do.”
Darilag further asserted that he was not provided with a copy of the complaints or issued a show cause order, which violates his right to due process, despite being placed under preventive suspension by the Office of the President on Jan. 16, 2024, for alleged grave misconduct, neglect in duty, and abuse of authority and oppression.
He stated, “I was not able to file any comment or counter-affidavit. This is a clear violation of my right to due process in respondent Prospero de Vera’s attempt to railroad the case against me.”
Despite filing a motion on Feb. 5, 2024, to transfer the cases against him to the Ombudsman, Darilag claimed that there has been no resolution on his motion to date, and he has yet to be provided with copies of the complaints or a show cause order.
Darilag also detailed instances where he was restricted from entering the CHEd premises and interacting with officials and employees, and his office staff faced unnecessary scrutiny of their belongings.
He attributed these actions to de Vera’s hostility towards him, particularly after Darilag opposed certain decisions made by the chairman.
Darilag emphasized his willingness to refute the allegations against him if given the opportunity, asserting that de Vera’s actions constitute grave abuse of authority or oppression.
On the other hand, de Vera clarified that the decision to suspend and investigate Darilag originated from Malacañang following complaints against him.
He justified the preventive suspension as a measure to prevent Darilag from leveraging his position during the investigation and to uphold due process.
Furthermore, de Vera reassigned Darilag’s responsibilities at 30 state universities and colleges to other commissioners to ensure the continuation of higher education programs and projects.
News: The head of the Commission on Higher Education (CHEd) is facing criminal charges
