DepEd, CHED finally agree to regulate tuition hikes

The Department of Education (DepEd) and the Commission on Higher Education (CHED) have finally agreed to regulate the imposition of tuition increases, Sen. Renato Cayetano said yesterday.

Cayetano, chairman of the Senate committee on education, said the two agencies agreed during a committee meeting to prepare guidelines and standards to measure and regulate tuition increases.

"The two agencies finally agreed that under existing jurisprudence, particularly in the case of Lina versus Carino, the Supreme Court ruled that although tuition fees have been deregulated, the DepEd and CHED have powers to regulate all kinds of school fees," he said.

He noted that the two government agencies had previously stated that they were powerless to regulate tuition increases.

"Even Atty. Antonio Abad, representing the Philippine Association of Colleges and Universities, accepted the proposition that DepEd and CHED can regulate tuition increases," Cayetano added.

He said that under the SC decision, DepEd and CHED must prepare guidelines and standards to measure and regulate tuition increases.

The committee undertook a series of public hearings on tuition hikes after receiving numerous petitions from concerned student organizations, parents and other lawmakers.

It was learned that out of 1,900 colleges and universities nationwide, about one-half have already increased tuition, some by up to 100 percent.

In a related development, Cayetano also cited the decision of DepEd to require all preparatory schools to secure permits first before operating.

Cayetano noted that pre-schools secure only local permits and rarely, DepEd permits.

"Out of the 1,000-plus preparatory schools in Metro Manila, only 200 have permits from DepEd, thus causing deep concern on the quality of education in these schools," Cayetano said.

He said that with the decision to require permits from pre-schools, the DepEd can now regulate the premises, textbooks, quality of teachers and tuition in preparatory schools. – Efren Danao