CHED Chair Prospero “Popoy” de Vera. FILE PHOTO
MANILA, Philippines — The Commission on Higher Education (CHEd) on Wednesday warned the public against individuals and groups posing as representatives of the Unified Student Financial Assistance System for Tertiary Education (UniFAST), adding that authorities are already investigating several complaints involving such scam.
UniFAST OIC-Executive Director Ryan Estevez, CHEd said in a statement, is already investigating the matter and has tapped the National Bureau of Investigation (NBI) to confirm that the individuals reported in the complaints are not in any way affiliated with the commission or UniFAST.
CHEd said it received formal complaints from a group of schools on individuals offering “deals with other institutions to facilitate their UniFAST accreditation to receive benefits” from the Tertiary Education Subsidy (TES).
UniFAST is an attached agency of CHEd and the primary implementer of Free Higher Education (FHE) and the TES program under Republic Act 10931, or the Universal Access to Quality Tertiary Education law.
Benefits under TES include tuition fees and allowance for educational expenses like books, supplies, and transportation.
“These posers trying to coax other schools to be accredited in the TES program are not even higher education institutions (HEIs) but members of one of the secondary school group branches, so they have no business with CHEd,” CHEd and UniFAST Board Chairman Prospero “Popoy” De Vera III said.
“Let us be wary and do a fact-check especially when there’s payment involved and a promise of guaranteed TES slots to its students,” he added.
The reported persons allegedly hosted a UniFAST ceremonial awarding of accreditation certificates to other member schools using an unofficial letterhead and logo without consent or knowledge of the UniFAST Secretariat.
De Vera stressed that there are no groups or organizations authorized by CHEd to recruit or process papers of students as all transactions are done through official HEIs and commission offices.
CHEd issued the warning as the new academic year nears and most students and their families seek scholarships and available financial aid to support college education as the new academic year arrives amid the COVID-19 pandemic.
“We ask our HEIs to help us disseminate the correct information about the TES program so that our students are always guided on the proper processes for TES inclusion,” added De Vera.
The TES is a grant-in aid program funded by the national government that selects beneficiaries from public universities, colleges and private HEIs with an existing memorandum of agreement with CHEd and UniFAST.
The program is in accordance with Republic Act 10931 or the Universal Access to Quality Tertiary Education law. Faith Yuen Wei Ragasa, Inquirer trainee
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