Manila university caught between 2 presidents

MANILA, Philippines–Students may not be aware of it but a tussle for the leadership of the Pamantasan ng Lungsod ng Maynila (PLM) is simmering between its newly appointed president and his supposedly ousted predecessor.

There has been no physical confrontation so far but PLM acting president Amado Valdez said that former Justice Secretary Artemio Tuquero, who acted as PLM president for about a year despite the lack of a formal appointment from Manila Mayor Joseph Estrada, has been reversing his orders.

Tuquero, who insisted he is the rightful president of PLM, got a 72-hour temporary restraining order (TRO) from the Manila Regional Trial Court on Thursday which prevented the implementation of a board of regents resolution issued late last week for his ouster.

“He will use this TRO to refuse to comply (with our resolution),” Valdez told the Inquirer.

“He’s struggling to stay [on]. I [already] made instructions in writing but he came out with another instruction afterward, recalling my orders,” he added, without elaborating as to what these instructions were.

The board resolution issued on July 8 reversed its election of Tuquero as PLM president after the Civil Service Commission (CSC) invalidated his appointment when it found out that he was not appointed to the post by Estrada.

Under the PLM charter, the school president needs an appointment coming from the city mayor and concurred in by the city council. He should then be elected to the post by the board of regents.

Estrada apparently appointed Tuquero only to the board before the other members elected him as university president, a procedure not in accordance with the school charter.

Earlier CSC resolutions found Tuquero unfit to head the Universidad de Manila because he was “too old” and the PLM because he lacked a doctorate degree—a prerequisite to lead a government-run university or college.

Estrada also issued a letter last week addressed to Valdez and the CSC which confirmed that he had “not appointed any university president up to the present time.”

“I will appoint a qualified person accordingly. In the meantime, I recognize the designation of the board chair as acting president in order to ensure that the interests of the students and the teachers of the PLM are served without undue disruption,” the letter dated July 9 read.