DepEd Closes Dormant Bank Accounts Worth P362.8 Million After COA Audit

The Department of Education (DepEd) has closed a P362.8 million fund in some of their bank accounts after being questioned by the Commission on Audit (COA). DepEd Undersecretary and spokesperson Michael Poa stated that these bank accounts were dormant and left by the Duterte administration.

“Apparently, there were donations or some funds that were with DepEd from the previous administration that have become dormant,” explained Poa.

“We are in the process of closing down those accounts,” the official added.

In the 2022 audit report, COA recommended closing the “unauthorized, unnecessary, and dormant” bank accounts and surrendering the collected money to the national treasury.

State auditors further mentioned that DepEd violated Presidential Decree No. 1445, also known as the Government Auditing Code of the Philippines, and therefore should return the funds to the Bureau of Treasury.