MALACANANG has described Vice President Sara Duterte’s tenure as head of the Department of Education (DepEd) as a “complete failure” after she stated that the Philippines lags behind other countries in education.
Presidential Communications Office Undersecretary and Palace Press Officer Claire Castro responded to VP Sara’s statement that the country remains at a “paper and pencil” level compared to other nations with modernized education systems.
Castro stated that VP Sara was given the opportunity to lead DepEd and implement the “very reforms” she is now complaining about.
“She was given the opportunity, the President trusted her, from 2022 to 2024 to be DepEd Secretary. For almost two years, she should have worked on whatever she is complaining about; she should have fulfilled it during her time. This trust, with her complaint now, only reflects that as she was DepEd Secretary, it was a complete failure,” Castro said.
Castro assured teachers and students that there is nothing to worry about because the current Education Secretary, Sonny Angara, is addressing the problems left behind by VP Sara in the department.
“And students, teachers, and teaching staff should not worry. Our DepEd Secretary, Secretary Angara, is cleaning up whatever mess was left behind in the past. And if we are only talking about modernization, the 1.5 million gadgets, laptops, and other teaching materials have been addressed by Secretary Angara, which were only pending since 2020 and not used. So, it was only in 2024 that Secretary Angara was able to fix it,” she added.
Meanwhile, speaking at a program in Kuwait, VP Sara said that while other countries have modernized their education systems, the Philippines remains stuck in the “paper-and-pencil stage.” She added that students in other countries are busy with “robotics and coding,” while the Philippines continues to struggle to catch up.
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