Decentralize DepEd

The Department of Education (DepEd) rightfully dismissed as having no basis in law the request of the Makati City government to administer and manage three schools located in the enlisted men’s barrios, or “embo.” The request came more than a year after the Supreme Court (SC) handed down its final ruling that the embo areas previously under Makati City actually belong to the jurisdiction of Taguig City.

The embo refers to the areas subdivided around the former Fort Andres Bonifacio Military Reservation. It is the popular Metro Manila go-to place now called the Bonifacio Global City Complex (BGC). The land dispute started in September 1993 when Taguig filed a complaint before the Pasig regional trial court (RTC) and claimed jurisdiction over these embo areas annexed to the city of Makati.

In 2011, the Pasig RTC ruled in favor of Taguig and Makati lost ten barangays, namely, Cembo, South Cembo, Comembo, East Rembo, West Rembo, Pembo, Pitogo, Northside, Southside and Rizal. Makati brought this to the Court of Appeals which in March 2017 upheld the decision in favor of Taguig. On April 4, 2023, the 15-man High Court awarded the embo areas to Taguig with finality and put closure to this case.

Apparently, however, Makati has not yet given up the fight. Makati Mayor Abigail Binay opened up another venue to press the city government’s rights to still run at least the three public schools under its previous aegis. These are the Makati Science High School (MSHS); the Fort Bonifacio Elementary School (FBES) and the Fort Bonifacio High School (FBHS).

In a letter addressed to Mayor Binay, DepEd Undersecretary for Operations Atty. Revsee Escobedo respectfully turned down Makati’s request. The DepEd invoked the SC ruling in reply to the “request” of Makati.

Aside from “lacking in legal basis and justification,” Escobedo explained Makati’s “request” would in effect contravene both the 1987 Constitution and the Governance of Basic Education Act of 2001. This is the law declaring governance of basic education is a national government mandate.

This means, Escobedo pointed out, all embo public schools falling under the jurisdiction of the national government must be administered and managed by DepEd. Makati cannot rely on its claim of ownership over the school land, school building, facilities and equipment since this was not even considered in the SC final ruling in favor of Taguig, the DepEd official argued.

“While this Office acknowledges the commendable intent of LGU Makati to support the learners, this Office must uphold rule of law and is therefore constrained to recommend the denial of its request,” the DepEd letter read.

“LGU Makati is, however, not precluded from seeking recourse to other remedies available under law, as it may deem fit,” it added.

The final ruling of any High Court decision has the force and effect of a law.

Mayor Binay though may opt to seek a reconsideration of the DepEd stand, if she so desires. After all, the decision was reached during the tenure of Vice President Sara Duterte, who used to be concurrent Deped Secretary. Makati submitted this request in two separate letters sent one after the other to the DepEd in August 2023.

Taguig City Mayor Lani Cayetano made their own counter-submission to DepEd the next month. Incidentally, the Cayetanos are political allies of the Dutertes. After VP Sara resigned last July 19, she was replaced by former Senator Juan Edgardo “Sonny” Angara who is now DepEd “acting” Secretary. At the Senate, Angara along with Mayor Binay’s elder sister Nancy, are seatmates and allies. In that sense, the Binays may have a soft spot in the heart of Angara. Just saying.

Mayor Binay’s request would surely open up old wounds. But such claims of Makati have no leg to stand on. It would only make her appear she could not bear losing control and power over these areas already ruled by the SC.

Perhaps, however, all is not lost yet. The outgoing mayor of Makati is being groomed to run for the Senate in the coming May 2025 polls. Mayor Binay was earlier among the frontliners identified in the senatorial line-up of the Nationalist People’s Coalition (NPC). She previously served for three consecutive terms as a Makati congresswoman.

So if she succeeds to return as a lawmaker, Mayor Binay could work out with the next Congress to pass a law. She can initiate a bill that will seek to empower the local government units (LGUs) all over the country, whether poor or rich like city of Makati, to run and administer their own public elementary and high schools.

She could author and find co-authors and support in Congress of a legislation to decentralize the DepEd and devolve certain of its powers and functions down to the LGUs. This is precisely advocated by the Philippine Business for Education (PBEd) that first suggested the decentralization of DepEd during our Kapihan sa Manila Bay last July 10. That early, PBEd president Chito Salazar observed the over-centralized powers and functions of the DepEd have been adding to the problem of “learning crisis” in the Philippines.

“We need to bring accountability and decision-making to the local level and we (at PBEd) suggested the local governments should have bigger roles because they know the situation on the ground,” Salazar stressed.

He mentioned his “favorite example” during the lockdowns implemented after the March 2020 outbreak of the COVID-19 pandemic in our country.

He recounted the national government decisions that declared “no classes” on general basis in all places, even those without any COVID-19 cases. “So decisions like that should be left to the local,” he pointed out.

Under the existing set-up, Salazar noted, the local school boards get annual budget allocation from the LGUs as local education funds for school repair, or building new ones. But no actual powers of administration of local public schools, he rued. “We should allow them (local school boards) to choose their teachers,” the PBEd chief pressed.

That proposed decentralization of DepEd would, admittedly, take a long route in Congress.