NEWS ANCHOR’S TECH COMPANY DISQUALIFIED FROM P654-M DEPED TV PROJECT
THE PRODUCTION company owned by news anchor Paolo Bediones has been disqualified from the online learning project of the Department of Education.
THE PRODUCTION company owned by news anchor Paolo Bediones has been disqualified from the online learning project of the Department of Education.
The joint venture of Radenta Technologies Inc. of a certain Cherie Cuela and the Ei2 Tech Inc. of Bediones were unable to get the second phase of DepEd TV project worth P654 million.
The disqualification notice was signed by Education Undersecretary Alain Pascua.
The notice said the “bidder failed to justify the withdrawal of the key personnel of the Ei2 Tech, Inc’s production team.”
“Neither has the bidder answered or responded to the allegations of falsifications by the team members and use the latter’s names without their knowledge, as well as their discontinued engagement with Ei2 Tech, Inc. as early October 2021,” DepEd added.
The agency said the names and resume were submitted for the project that involved the distribution and archiving of TV and radio-based lessons for DepEd TV and DepEd Radio.
Some 116 media workers in January 29 filed a complaint to Bediones, saying they wanted their names and curriculum vitae to be stricken off the bid made by the joint venture as these were used without their knowledge and consent.
They said their signatures were falsely dated to make it appear they signed on November 4 or Nov. 29 last year.
They also aired their grievances about the alleged unpaid compensation, as well as that of other production employees who worked on phase one of the DepEd TV project, amounting to P42 million.
According to reports, the delaying of salary lasted for one to eight months.
This prompted the complainants to stop working in October 2022 until they were given their salary.
Moreover, DepEd said the Ei2 Tech was banned from the bidding after it earned only 64 percent on the technical component in the evaluation.
The passing score is 70 percent, the education department said.
DepEd’s bids and awards committee reported the Radenta-Ei2 Tech joint venture recognized the withdrawal of personnel, but it did not reply to the allegation of falsification of documents.
