Teachers’ group sues DepEd director for alleged red-tagging

CITY OF SAN FERNANDO — The Alliance of Concerned Teachers in Central Luzon (ACT-CL) sued Department of Education (DepEd) regional director Beatriz Torno at the Office of the Ombudsman and sent her a letter of condemnation on her birthday on Friday following her supposed red-tagging of the group in a media forum.

Torno’s statement was “highly irresponsible, baseless and downright malicious,” said ACT-CL secretary general Mathew Guetan Santiago.

Torno said “nothing directly” about ACT-CL being a communist front or its members being with the New People’s Army, according to Michelle Catap, DepEd regional office public information officer.

Torno, who retired on Thursday, spoke at a forum of the Pampanga Press Club two weeks ago. She was asked about the profiling being done by police.

Santiago said Torno had not issued a disclaimer which, he said, she promised to do.

Santiago said the complaint at the Ombudsman makes Torno “criminally and administratively liable [for her actions].” /lzb