Students hit CHEd ‘incompetence’

Youth groups have assailed the Commission on Higher Education (CHEd) for failing to inform college students of the suspension of classes as heavy rains and strong winds battered Metro Manila on Thursday.

The National Union of Students of the Philippines (NUSP) said CHEd was “inutile” and “incompetent in all aspects of its existence,” from regulating school fees to issuing timely announcements related to weather.

While the Department of Education issued class suspension orders amid heavy rains in certain areas on Thursday afternoon, CHEd made no announcement until reached by the media in the evening.

Executive Director Julito Vitriolo said CHEd had given school officials the discretion to suspend classes. He said its policy only provided for automatic cancellation of classes in areas under Storm Signal No. 3.

But the NUSP said: “CHEd is always stranded. From merely giving announcements and directives regarding the suspension of classes to regulating school fees, it is incapable of deciding for the welfare of students.”

The Kabataan party-list group said CHEd was “a weak and indecisive authority in matters concerning the safety and welfare of students during weather disturbances such as typhoons.”

“[It] should implement informed decisions without having to pass its authority to schools. It is bothersome that even on the suspension of classes, [it] now appears at the behest of schools when it should be the other way around,” said Kabataan secretary general Athena Gardon.