School transfer draws protests

CALASIAO, Pangasinan—Parents and alumni of Bayambang Central School (BCS) in Bayambang town in Pangasinan province on Tuesday staged a rally in front of the new school site to urge the local government and the Department of Education (DepEd) to instead reopen the old elementary school.

The old school was closed last year by the town government, supposedly for 20 days, to allow the government to clean, repair and improve the facilities in the three-hectare campus.

Classes have been held at the new school site some 3 kilometers away from the town proper and should have lasted only until Nov. 4, 2013, said Filipina Alcantara, president of the school’s Parents-Teachers Association (PTA).

Classes, however, continue to be held at the new school site, which angered the parents and BCS alumni.

But Bayambang Councilor Levin Uy said the order transferring the school campus was for an indefinite duration, not 20 days. Uy said the old campus stands on local government property, which has been eyed as site of a central bus terminal and for offices of national government agencies.

Alcantara said the relocation of the school was illegal because only the DepEd, not the local government, has the authority to do this.

Uy confirmed that the DepEd will issue the final decision regarding the school’s permanent location, and negotiations have been ongoing.

Alcantara, who served as treasurer for the previous set of PTA officials, said the teachers and parents were not consulted about the relocation.

Parents and some teachers also want classes returned to the old campus, fearful that the pupils would catch a disease or be victims of an accident given that the new campus is close to a motor pool and a hospital.

Danilo Lopez, BCS principal, did not take calls made by the Inquirer on Tuesday to seek his position on the issue. Yolanda Sotelo, Inquirer Northern Luzon