DepEd Says Over ₱100 Million Can Be Recovered from Voucher Scam

The Department of Education (DepEd) says it can still get back over ₱100 million from private schools that cheated the government’s senior high school voucher program.

Education Secretary Sonny Angara said DepEd has already taken back ₱65 million from 54 schools that lied about students who weren’t really enrolled. These were called “ghost students” — students who either didn’t exist or weren’t allowed to get the government subsidy.

But Angara said the amount could be much higher.
“Hindi lang ₱65 million. Baka lampas ₱100 million ang puwedeng bawiin,” he said in a forum.

DepEd Files Cases vs. Schools

DepEd already filed civil and criminal cases against these schools — not just to recover the money, but to set an example and stop others from doing the same.

“Hindi lang ito tungkol sa pera. Nakasalalay dito ang kinabukasan ng mga kabataan,” Angara said.

What’s the Voucher Program?

This program started in 2015. It helps Grade 11 and 12 students pay for tuition in private schools. Instead of giving money directly to students, DepEd sends the funds straight to the schools.

But some schools took advantage and listed fake or unqualified students just to get more money.

In March, DepEd said it found around 22,000 ghost students during the 2023–2024 school year. Because of this, DepEd held back around ₱200 million in payments.

Not Always Fraud — But Still a Problem

DepEd said not all issues are because of cheating. Some were just clerical errors or mistakes in paperwork. But because there are over 1 million students using the program, it’s hard for DepEd to check every single one.

Only about 10% of the schools are visited each year by DepEd or the Private Education Assistance Committee (PEAC) that helps with monitoring.

Angara says DepEd is still investigating and will continue working to fix the system.

“Sayang ang programa kung inaabuso lang. Kailangan itong protektahan,” he said.