The government allocated a whopping P40 billion to the Expanded Government Assistance to Students and Teachers in Private Education Act (E-GASTPE) in 2024 alone, a House leader disclosed Sunday amid controversy surrounding the voucher program and alleged "ghost students."

Pasig Rep. Roman Romulo, chair of the House Committee on Basic Education and Culture, said that P12 billion was allocated for the Education Service Contracting (ESC) program, while P27 billion was earmarked for the Senior High School (SHS) voucher program. Despite the substantial funding, however, the quality of education remains subpar.

"This is really important because the budget allocated to the SHS voucher program is enormous. So, we want to know if it's being properly monitored," Romulo said in Filipino during an interview.

The ESC is a partnership program between the Department of Education (DepEd) and private schools aimed at easing congestion in public high schools by absorbing junior high school students who wish to attend private institutions. Financially challenged learners are the program's top priority.

Meanwhile, the SHS voucher program provides financial assistance to qualified senior high school students wishing to enroll in private SHS or non-DepEd schools.

At least 12 private schools are under intense scrutiny after DepEd discovered that "ghost students" were benefiting from the SHS program, defrauding the government through falsification and perjury for signing documents under oath.

According to DepEd Secretary Sonny Angara, the government could have lost P52.6 million for the 2023-2024 school year alone — under Vice President Sara Duterte's tenure as the agency's chief — if the non-existent learners had not been flagged.

The issue surrounding the SHS voucher program dates back to the 18th Congress, during former President Rodrigo Duterte's tenure, Romulo said.

"It all started when K-12 was implemented in 2016, and there were not enough classrooms. So, DepEd started issuing department orders in 2014 to provide vouchers for SHS, but we think it was not done strictly," he explained.

A House resolution urged Romulo's committee to conduct a parallel investigation into the undocumented beneficiaries of the SHS program to identify the loopholes and ensure that officials responsible for the blunder are held accountable.

Last week, DepEd launched an investigation, starting with 12 private schools across nine regions suspected of committing unlawful acts.

A 2017 report from the Commission on Audit revealed that 115 senior high school students considered "ghost students" were listed as beneficiaries of the SHS program.

In a Senate hearing last year, lawmakers discovered that the number of undocumented beneficiaries had surged to 19,000, prompting an in-depth investigation.