Education undersecretary Trygve Olaivar on Thursday denied allegations that he demanded and accepted kickbacks from former Department of Public Works and Highways (DPWH) undersecretary Roberto Bernardo for billions of pesos worth of infrastructure projects.
Olaivar likewise announced that he is taking a leave of absence from the Department of Education (DepEd).
“I deny the allegations made (by Bernardo) and want to state clearly that I welcome any investigation regarding this matter. To allow a fair inquiry, I will voluntarily take a leave of absence from my post and am ready to fully cooperate with any and all proceedings,” he said in a statement.
Bernardo said that Olaivar collected a 15 percent commission from P2.85 billion worth of projects funded under the 2024 unprogrammed funds “supposedly for the Office of the Executive Secretary.”
Prior to working at the DepEd, Olaivar was a former staff of former senators Ramon “Bong” Revilla Jr. and Juan Edgardo “Sonny” Angara, who is now the education secretary.
Bernardo claimed that “I delivered or caused to be delivered” the commissions to Olaivar “in Magallanes, Makati and other places.”
