Sotto slams exclusion of Filipino from core subjects

Removing Filipino as a core subject in college is unconstitutional and could imperil the younger generation’s facility in the language, Senate President Vicente Sotto III said on Thursday.

The Constitution, Sotto said, states that the government “shall take steps to initiate and sustain the use of Filipino as a medium of official communication and as [the] language of instruction in the educational system.”

He added: “The Filipino language is part of our identity as a people and as such, we should strive to preserve and strengthen this at all times.”

Supreme Court ruling

In a ruling released on Friday last week, the Supreme Court upheld the constitutionality of the K-12 program and  allowed the removal of Filipino and “panitikan” (literature) from the core subjects that should be taught in college.

The ruling cited the Commission on Higher Education memorandum changing the general education curriculum in the tertiary level, saying this was meant to ensure that subjects in grade school, high school and college would not be duplicated.

‘Deterioration’

But removing Filipino as a core subject in college or any school level would lead to the “deterioration” of the youth’s ability to master their own language, Sotto said.

As it is, many of today’s youths cannot use Filipino properly, he said, adding that the government must exert more effort to protect the Filipino language.

The high court’s decision removing Filipino and panitikan from the college curriculum has drawn flak from academics, educators, national artists and cultural workers.