Budget secretary’s ”carrot and stick” approach to education scored
“Tertiary education is really a privilege.” – Budget Secretary Florencio Abad
By INA ALLECO R. SILVERIO
Bulatlat.com
MANILA — As student and grassroots organizations gear for more big
protests against the railroading of the 2012 Budget, a professor of the
University of the Philippines (UP) slammed what she termed as a
“carrot and stick lecture” of a ranking official of the administration
of Benigno Aquino III to administrators of state colleges and
universities. She said the government continues to betray its mandate to
prioritize education as a public service.
Professor Judy M. Taguiwalo of the UP College of Social Work and
Community Development in Diliman said Budget Secretary Florencio Abad
has exposed his low regard for SUCs.Taguiwalo’s criticism of the budget
secretary took off from Abad’s statement reported in the Philippine
Daily Inquirer’s November 14 story that “Tertiary education is really a
privilege” and given this “ spending money on state colleges must be
directed to top-performing institutions. “
In an audience with SUC officials in the Cordillera and the Ilocos
region, Abad said school officials should survey and profile their
students. Through this survey , he said, schools could determine if they
are really serving the poor in the provinces. If not, Abad said, these
SUCs should initiate “reforms.” If they do not initiate reforms, the
government will no longer invest in these SUCs. By “reforms,” Abad
meant instituting measures to generate more funds such as tuition
increases.
He added that the government has a limited fund for education and
this has prompted it to put together a new policy regarding tertiary
education.
According to Abad, gathering empirical data to illustrate how state
schools actually serve “their intended clientele” will enable the SUCs
to determine which of them could serve as regional universities instead
of being state-run. He also said the government has to select state
schools with skilled faculty and equipment to promote courses best
suited for priority industries.
He named these priority industries as business process outsourcing
(BPO), electronics and semiconductors, agriculture, infrastructure and
tourism.
Education remains a privilege
Taguiwalo said Abad’s statement contradicts Article XIV, Section 1 of
the Philippine Constitution which states “the State shall protect and
promote the right of all citizens to quality education at all levels,
and shall take appropriate steps to make such education accessible to
all.”
“But it is not just the clear failure of Abad, who keeps reminding us
that he was Education secretary, to uphold the constitutional provision
on education at all levels as a right. It is his low regard for state
universities and colleges and their role in ensuring access to quality
tertiary education,”she said.
Based on the Commission on Higher Education data as of August 2010,
there are only 110 state universities and colleges (57 universities, 53
colleges) out of a total 607 public higher education institutions in the
country..... MORE
Source: Bulatlat.com
URL: http://bulatlat.com/main/2011/12/04/budget-secretary%E2%80%99s-%E2%80%9Dcarrot-and-stick%E2%80%9D-approach-to-education-scored/
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1 comment
ang mga niluklok (HINDI talaga ibinoto) na mga dilaw umpisa ng edsa 2 lalo na, eh mga walang paggalang sa saligang batas. nagsasalita at kumikilos labag sa nakasaad sa 1987 na konstitutsyon. "accessible to all" sabi ng saligang batas tapos sasabihin ni Liberal Party of Cheats member na si Abad na "tertiary education is really a privilege"? hanggang mayaman na lamang, ganoon?
"Taguiwalo said Abad’s statement contradicts Article XIV, Section 1 of the Philippine Constitution which states “the State shall protect and promote the right of all citizens to quality education at all levels, and shall take appropriate steps to make such education accessible to all.”"
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