Department of Information and Communications Technology (DICT) undersecretary David Almirol has denied allegations of conflict of interest involving P1.55 billion worth of government contracts, maintaining that he had divested his interests in Multisys Technologies Corp. in Sept. 2022.
In a statement posted on Facebook on Thursday, Oct. 22, Almirol said he fully divested his interests in Multisys on Sept. 1, 2022, after assuming office as DICT undersecretary on August 4, 2022.
He said this met the 60-day divestment requirement under the law, while the late filing of the company’s General Information Sheet (GIS) was beyond his control.
Almirol also disputed claims linking him to the contracts under investigation, saying no DICT contract was awarded to Multisys.
He said the contracts were awarded to companies belonging to the PLDT group, which had been providing services to the government, including the DICT, before he joined the agency.
He added that the contracts went through the department’s Bids and Awards Committee and competitive bidding.
The statement comes a day after the Office of the Ombudsman ordered Almirol’s six-month preventive suspension without pay over alleged conflict of interest involving at least eight e-government contracts worth approximately P1.55 billion.
According to the Ombudsman’s order, the contracts were awarded between November 2023 and May 2025 to companies with financial relationships with Multisys.
The projects covered information and communications technology consultancy, e-government application deployment, Web-based messaging services, cloud infrastructure, data center colocation, and software subscriptions.
Almirol founded Multisys in 2010 and served as its president and chief executive officer for more than a decade before joining the DICT, where he later led the development and rollout of the eGovPH Super App.
The Ombudsman cited corporate records showing that Almirol was still listed as holding a 49.21% stake in Multisys in a GIS notarized on October 27, 2022, and received by the Securities and Exchange Commission on November 2, 2022. His name was removed from the stockholder list in a subsequent filing received by the SEC on November 21, 2022.
The anti-graft body said the records raised questions about compliance with Section 9 of Republic Act 6713, or the Code of Conduct and Ethical Standards for Public Officials and Employees, which requires public officials to divest business interests that may create a conflict of interest within 60 days of assuming office.
The complaints stemmed from a June 2025 report by the DICT Internal Audit Unit that flagged possible conflicts of interest involving the hiring of former Multisys personnel and the award of contracts to related companies.
The Ombudsman said Almirol’s continued stay in office could prejudice the investigation because he had custody or control of documents and other evidence relevant to the case. The preventive suspension is intended to protect the proceedings and does not constitute a final finding of administrative liability.
Almirol said he respects the Ombudsman’s authority to investigate allegations involving public officials and would comply with the order and cooperate with the proceedings.
He also defended his work at the DICT, saying he was guided by Pres. Ferdinand Marcos Jr.’s directive to streamline government services, eliminate redundant processes, reduce unnecessary ICT expenses, and use technology to promote transparency and curb corruption.
He said he remained committed to digital government and trusted that the facts would establish his position.
The administrative complaints against Almirol remain pending before the Ombudsman.
