The Sto. Niño Parochial School would act in accordance with the law upon receiving a copy of the Court of Appeals (CA) resolution directing the school to issue a certificate of good moral character to high school salutatorian Krisel Mallari, the school’s lawyer said on Wednesday.
“The question is, is there a legal basis to demand the school to issue a certificate of good moral character? Isn’t it that when you issue a good moral character, you have to tell the truth?” lawyer Maritonie Renee Resurreccion said in a phone interview.
“We have to see the CA resolution first so we would know what to do in accordance with the law,” Resurreccion said. “We want to see it because the case is still ongoing in the Quezon City Regional Trial Court.”
Mallari is the batch 2015 salutatorian whose graduation speech insinuating irregularities in grade computation was interrupted by school officials. The incident was caught on video and went viral on social media.
“With everything that has transpired, after vilifying the name and division of the school, how can we now issue a certificate of good moral character?” Resurreccion said.
“We have given Ms Mallari all her transfer credentials as provided for and as required by law,” the lawyer said, referring to the transcript of record and certificate of eligibility that also indicated that she was class salutatorian.
READ: School denies certificate to salutatorian despite court order
Reached for comment, Mallari said she has been accepted at the University of Santo Tomas as a scholar but she could not complete her enrolment because she lacked the certificate of good moral character. She refused further comment.
Resurreccion said the school initiated a settlement asking the Mallaris for a written acknowledgment that the school exercised special parental authority over Krisel as a minor in their care.
“They said she was not allowed to exercise her freedom of expression when her graduation speech was interrupted. But as a parent, you can do that and that is not contrary to law or contrary to morals. The school exercises special parental authority given to it by law,” Resurreccion said.
She added that Mallari submitted a different speech than the one that she delivered.
“We wanted acknowledgment that the school did not do wrong against Mallari. Even the allegation that the school did not show her the computation of her grade is not true,” she said.
The division superintendent of the Department of Education earlier issued an order also compelling the school to issue the good moral certificate, but Resurreccion said it was not final and executory.
She said the school’s appeal has been pending with the office of the DepEd regional director. With Veronica Roque/SM