Manila Philippines — The teachers’ representative in the congress welcomed the appointment of Senator Sonny Angara as the new secretary of the Department of Education (DEPED).
According to Assistant Minority Leader and Alliance of the Concerned Teachers (ACT Teachers), Representative France Castro, they are challenging Angara as secretary of DEPED to immediately address the worsening education crisis in the country.
Also the long-standing call of teachers and non-teaching personnel, and should utilize the Second Congressional Commission on Education (EDCOM 2) in amending reforms in education system.
“While it is good that a new DepEd Secretary has been named, we challenge Sen. Sonny Angara to hit the ground running and immediately address the education crisis in our country as well as the long-standing demands of teachers and education support personnel,” said Castro in a statement.
As for the Gabriela Women’s Party, Angara should lay down concrete solutions to the myriad problems of students, teachers and the entire education system that Vice President Sara Duterte allegedly failed to address.
“The change in leadership at DepEd must not be mere musical chairs. Secretary Angara must provide concrete solutions to the myriad problems facing our students, teachers, and the entire education system which VP Sara Duterte refused to address,” said Gabriela Women’s Party Representative Arlene Brush.
But Brosas insisted, apart from the K-12 program, Angara should also ensure the quality education and not the alleged militarization amid the implementation of the mandatory Reserved Officer Training Corps (ROTC).
Angara, are supporting legislations towards mandatory ROTC in the country.
The Kabataan Partylist calls for the K-12 program under Angara’s leadership to be scrapped as it fails to provide quality education in the country.
“We have been calling for the elimination of this program for a long time, regardless of what Malacañang dictates, even though Sen. Angara was the former author of the K-12 program,” said Kabataan Representative Raoul Manuel.
The Makabayan Coalition challenged the new DEPED administration to immediately respond to the lack of classrooms in the country and review the curriculum, including school regulations to ensure the safety and freedom of student towards quality education.
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