Budget for Manila Bay beautification may have bought gadgets or used in printing of modules -DepEd

If the Department of Education had the same amount used to fund the dumping of artificial white sand in Manila Bay, there would have been enough funds to purchase gadgets and print modules for students for their distance education.

Photo credit: Philnews.ph

On Monday, DepEd Secretary Leonor Briones was asked at a televised press briefing to give her thoughts on the funding for the beautification of Manila Bay, if it had instead been granted to the education sector.

In response to the question she replied,

Kung halimbawa may P389 million na ibibigay ang pamahalaan sa departamento, sigurado ako na malaking bahagi niyan ay mapupunta sa pangagailangan ng mga gadgets.

[If for instance, the government will give P389 million to the department, I’m sure a big part of that will go to gadgets.]

Isa pa, ang pag-print ng mga modules. As I said, dito sa Pilipinas maski urban centers hindi naman lahat ay may access sa technology at kailangan secure pa ang sources ng ating connectivity, 

she added.

[Another thing is the printing of modules. As I said, here in the Philippines, not all urban centers have access to technology and sources of connectivity still have to be secured.]

Briones, however, clarified though that her department does not meddle with the budget of other government agencies. She said,

Hindi kami nakikialam sa budget ng may budget… Kung ano ang in-allocate sa amin ng Presidente at ng Department of Budget [and Management], yun ang pinagkakasya namin,

[We don’t meddle with the budget of others. We work with how much budget was allocated to us by the President and the Department of Budget and Management.]

In earlier reports DepEd said that it has distributed gadgets to 93% of all public schools in the country under its computerization program.

Meanwhile, the Manila Bay rehabilitation project earned positive and negative criticism from the netizens. Environmental groups criticized the dumping of crushed dolomite rocks at the baywalk as an unnecessary part of the government's Manila Bay clean-up program. A scientist said storms and the high tide could wash away the artificial white sand.

Others said that the budget used for the project should have been spent for the COVID-19 response, but Malacañang said funds for the rehabilitation were already allocated even before the virus outbreak. The Department of Environment and Natural Resources (DENR) also defended the project, saying it would discourage littering in Manila Bay.

As for the the Department of Health (DOH), flagged potential health hazards that might be brought about by the plan to dump artificial “white sand”, among them are respiratory ailments. Dolomite dust can cause respiratory issues when inhaled. And If ingested, it could cause discomfort in a person’s gastrointestinal system, it will cause pain and diarrhea.