School owner insists Alaminos university campus illegal

DAGUPAN CITY—A private college, which sued the Alaminos government for financing the establishment of a Pangasinan State University (PSU) campus in the city, said officials threw good money after bad because the campus has been operating illegally since 2010.

In a June 20 letter to the Inquirer, Ruben Morante, president of the Philippines Accountancy and Science School (PASS), said the operation of the PSU campus was illegal because it was never approved by the university’s board of regents.

He also said the campus has been operating without papers from the Commission on Higher Education (CHEd).

“But [Alaminos Mayor Hernani] Braganza continues to pour millions of money in public funds into the university,” Morante said.

He said he has filed an administrative complaint against Braganza, PSU president Victoriano Estira and Alaminos City administrator Wilmer Panabang at the provincial board.

Morante said PASS does not intend to have the PSU Alaminos campus closed. However, it wants the PSU to address “a deliberate break in the process in securing first and foremost a CHEd permit or a certificate of compliance before it could legally operate in the area,” he said.

Braganza asked the provincial board to dismiss Morante’s complaint, arguing that it has no jurisdiction over Alaminos City. Yolanda Sotelo, with a report from Charles Keith, Inquirer Northern Luzon