Duterte links Zaldy Co’s Sunwest to ₱2.4-billion DepEd laptop scandal

MANILA — Vice President Sara Duterte has accused Sunwest Construction and Development Corp., owned by resigned Ako Bicol Party-list Representative Zaldy Co, of being involved in the Department of Education’s (DepEd) controversial ₱2.4-billion “overpriced” laptop procurement scandal first exposed by the Commission on Audit (COA) in 2021.

In a press conference on Tuesday, Duterte disclosed that during her term as Education Secretary, she ordered an internal probe into the questionable purchase of laptops for public school teachers during the COVID-19 pandemic.

“Imbestigahan nila 'yung laptop corruption scandal ng Department of Education. Nandun si Zaldy Co… Sunwest ang contractor ng laptop doon sa DepEd,” Duterte said, referring to Sunwest Construction, a company co-founded by Zaldy and his brother Christopher “Kito” Co.

The COA’s 2021 audit report previously flagged the laptops for being “pricey and outdated,” noting that each unit was bought at around ₱58,000 under the DepEd’s distance learning program implemented during the pandemic.

Confidential Funds and Evidence Gathering

Duterte further revealed that confidential funds under her office were used to obtain evidence in connection with the DepEd laptop probe.

“May confidential funds na pumunta doon sa paghahanap ng ebidensya sa investigation na yun,” she said.

The Vice President also criticized what she described as a pattern of selective corruption investigations meant to protect powerful individuals and allies of the administration.

“Bakit specific yung pag-iimbestiga? Bakit hindi iniimbestigahan lahat ng corruption scandal?... Kapag tatamaan na ang Office of the President, biglang namamatay yung imbestigasyon,” Duterte remarked, alleging that certain agencies “control the narrative” by limiting which cases are investigated.

COA ‘Fraud Audit’ Sought

DepEd Undersecretary Epimaco Densing confirmed that, upon Duterte’s instruction, the department requested a “fraud audit” from COA Chairperson Jose Calida to further investigate the procurement carried out by the Department of Budget and Management’s Procurement Service (PS-DBM).

“Since most of the information is beyond us, considering these were PS-DBM transactions done by previous officials, Secretary Sara Duterte allowed us to write COA to ask for a fraud audit,” Densing said.

He questioned why the specifications of the laptops were downgraded from 1.9GHz to 1.8GHz processors while their prices increased, pointing to possible irregularities.

“Isa sa pinaka-importanteng proseso ng pag-procure ay ‘yung market scanning… bakit tumaas ang presyo habang bumaba ang specs?” Densing added.

Sunwest’s Expanding Influence

Sunwest Construction, originally a Bicol-based contractor, has since grown into one of the country’s largest firms engaged in real estate, energy, and tourism. Its alleged involvement in high-value government projects has been under scrutiny before.

In 2024, Senator Joel Villanueva also linked Sunwest to the DepEd laptop deal and to the Pharmally Pharmaceuticals controversy involving pandemic procurement irregularities.

Continuing Controversy

Duterte’s latest revelation revives public interest in the laptop procurement case, one of the biggest pandemic-era controversies. Her allegations against Sunwest and the Co brothers may trigger renewed Senate and COA inquiries—testing the limits of the Marcos administration’s anti-corruption commitment and deepening the political rift between the country’s top leaders.