AMA Rural Bank of Mandaluyong (ARB) has filed a criminal complaint with the Office of the Ombudsman against the Department of Education (DepEd) and some officials, alleging the unlawful withholding of over ₱1.6 billion in loan repayments collected from public school teachers. These loans were previously extended by ARB as a DepEd-accredited lending institution.
Named as respondents in the ARB complaint were Usec. for Finance Annalyn M. Sevilla, Asec. for Finance Edson Byron K. Sy, Usec. for Legal and Legislative Affairs Filemon Ray L. Javier, and Chief Administrative Officer Cholita F. Tiong.
ARB claims that after a lengthy accounts reconciliation process, DepEd acknowledged collecting at least ₱1.015 billion by the end of 2024, with another ₱676 million still being reviewed. However, DepEd has not remitted the money to ARB, citing pending legal issues tied to ARB’s unlawful closure by the Bangko Sentral ng Pilipinas (BSP) in November 2019. ARB argues that these cases have already been resolved in its favor by the Supreme Court and the Court of Appeals.
According to ARB, DepEd’s refusal to release the funds—even after deducting its 1% service fee—violates the Anti-Graft and Corrupt Practices Act. The bank also says DepEd cannot use the BSP-related cases as an excuse to avoid payment since DepEd was not involved in them and the court rulings in favor of ARB have become final and executory.
The complaint comes amid broader concerns over DepEd’s handling of payroll deductions and remittances. In 2024, the Commission on Audit (COA) reported that DepEd failed to remit ₱3.1 billion in GSIS contributions and loan payments. A year earlier, COA found that DepEd had also failed to remit ₱5.55 billion in taxes, insurance contributions, and loan payments deducted from both teaching and non-teaching staff. DepEd was also lately involved in an issue relating to the questionable procurement of outdated and overpriced laptops.
ARB says the complaint is part of its effort to recover assets and repay its depositors, as well as to hold public officials accountable for mishandling the bank’s funds during the BSP-ordered illegal closure.
