The Department of Education (DepEd) helped the Philippine Army identify students who could be potential community leaders and schools that could host youth activities, but did not provide confidential or surveillance information to the Army’s 1st Infantry Division for its 2023 programs, an Army officer testified Tuesday.

Col. Manaros Boransing II, then assistant chief of staff for civil-military operations of the 1st Infantry “Tabak” Division, said DepEd’s information consisted of “open source” material about students and schools involved in the Youth Leadership Summit (YLS) and information, education and communication (IEC) activities.

Asked by Senate President Sherwin Gatchalian whether DepEd supplied the division with confidential or surveillance information for the two activities, Boransing answered, “No, sir.”

“What they give are open-source information about their students,” Boransing said, including information on potential leaders who could attend the YLS and schools that could be used as venues.

He said DepEd was a “very crucial” partner because teachers knew the students and could identify those with leadership potential.

“They are the ones who know the students. They spend more time with the students than even us, their parents,” Boransing said.

Key partner, but not intelligence arm

Boransing described the department as part of the core inter-agency technical working group for the YLS because the program targeted young people, many of whom were in schools.

Although the program also targeted out-of-school youth, DepEd remained important because of its knowledge of young people, he said.

“For instance, not all the target audience are in school; some or more than half are out-of-school youth,” Boransing said.

The Army, meanwhile, relied on its own intelligence units when assessing potential venues. “The venue, wherever it is, has to be safe from attacks and other things,” Boransing said.

For locations, Boransing said the Army also used intelligence from its own intelligence units, with the safety of participants as the primary consideration.

Costs borne by Army, LGUs

Asked by Senator-judge Bam Aquino about the cost of the YLS, Boransing said Army spending varied by activity and unit. One summit in Lanao del Sur had a budget of about P60,000, while another activity could cost around P30,000.

For the eight YLS activities covered by the hearing, he estimated the Army’s own spending at roughly P30,000 per activity, although he said he would need to check his records.

Local government units generally provided food, shirts and other support for participants, he said, while participating agencies shouldered their own expenses.

DepEd’s contribution included coordination, occasional use of its facilities and the provision of subject-matter experts, Boransing said. He could not say how much the department spent on those activities.

Aquino pointed out that the figures discussed in the hearing were far below the P15.54 million in confidential funds linked to information gathering and surveillance. Asked whether he knew how much DepEd spent, Boransing said: “I really don't know.”

During the 2024 House inquiry into DepEd’s P15.54 million confidential funds, lawmakers questioned the use of military certifications to support the department’s liquidation documents. DepEd had cited four Army certifications in documents submitted to the Commission on Audit in connection with P15.54 million in confidential-fund spending.