DepEd union meets on new boss today

They may have succeeded in removing the "dictator" from the Department of Education (DepEd), but the status quo set by former Education Secretary Raul Roco may remain in place.

Restive DepEd employees meet today on their stand on the appointment of Far Eastern University (FEU) president Edilberto de Jesus as the new education secretary.

This early, DepEd workers are bothered because they learned that De Jesus is a close friend of Roco, whose relationship with the DepEd workers was never harmonious in the one and a half years he served as education secretary.

DepEd union president Domingo Alidon, one of Roco’s strongest detractors, had this to say about the connection between Roco and De Jesus: "We were tipped off that Roco and De Jesus are best friends. Roco was also heard saying over the radio that De Jesus would be continuing his programs. If that will be the case, it seems nothing will change at DepEd."

Roco resigned on Aug. 13 after President Arroyo failed to inform him that she endorsed a probe on the graft complaint filed against him by the DepEd union before the Presidential Anti-Graft Commission (PAGC).

However, prior to appointing Roco as education secretary, Mrs. Arroyo’s first choice for the post was De Jesus, but the latter could not join her Cabinet because he was already FEU president at the time.

De Jesus, 69, received a doctorate degree in modern Southeast Asian History from prestigious Yale University in New Haven Connecticut. He is also the president of the Philippine Association of Colleges and Universities and is a board member of his alma mater, Ateneo de Manila University.

De Jesus once served as former President Corazon Aquino’s adviser on rural development from 1988 to 1992, after which he returned to academe as FEU president.

While he may not be very welcomed to DepEd by the employees’ union, it seems he has the support of the students. The National Union of Students of the Philippines (NUSP) has put its support behind De Jesus because of his active participation in the effort to abolish the Reserve Officers’ Training Course (ROTC).

According to Alidon, the DepEd union meets today to discuss their stand on De Jesus’ appointment as their new chief: "One of the issues that we will tackle is the complaint of FEU accountancy students who failed to graduate last year when FEU changed (its) curriculum. We want to know what De Jesus’ participation (in) this (matter is)."

Alidon added that he and his colleagues in the DepEd union will keep De Jesus under close scrutiny to ensure that he will have "no personal or political interest" other than improving the country’s public education system.

"We hope that our new secretary will respect us this time. We’ll always be vigilant against those who have personal and political interests," Alidon added.

This developed as the Alliance of Concerned Teachers urged De Jesus to review the Revised Basic Education Curriculum. ACT said the RBEC is only causing confusion among students and teachers.

ACT secretary-general Raymund Villanueva said Roco had been in such a rush to implement the RBEC program last June that he failed to properly prepare the students and teachers for the new curriculum.

"De Jesus (must) re-assess RBEC or our schools will produce a generation of Filipinos who will lack the knowledge of our history and culture because of the global orientation of RBEC," Villanueva said.

No need to pursue graft raps vs Roco

Meanwhile, DepEd Central Office Union chairman Fidel Salosagco said in a statement they no longer need to pursue the graft complaint they filed against Roco: "As far as we are concerned, we have won resoundingly against Roco."

The DepEd union filed an administrative case against Roco for "gross ignorance, grave misconduct and incompetence and violation of Republic Act 6713."

Section 4 of RA 6713 states that public officials and employees shall always uphold public interest over and above personal interest; that resources and powers of office must be employed and used efficiently and economically to avoid wasting public funds.

Part of the complaint against Roco was the hiring of driver Pablito Aquino as a department driver who was assigned as a "personal" driver for Roco’s wife, Sonia, who is not either an employee or official of the department, Salosagco said.

Another violation cited by the DepEd union in its complaint against Roco is the hiring of 31 consultants who do not possess specialized expertise or technical expertise which cannot be provided from within the DepEd ranks. The consultants, Salosagco said, performed functions similar to those performed by DepEd employees.