‘A vote for quality education’: Former DepEd officials, staff endorse Leni-Kiko tandem
Almost 100 former officials and personnel of the Department of Education (DepEd) expressed support to the presidential and vice-presidential bids of Vice President Leni Robredo and Senator Kiko Pangilinan in the upcoming 2022 elections in May.
In a statement of support released Friday, March 18, the former officials, staff, and teachers of the DepEd (formerly Department of Education, Culture and Sports or DECS), deemed Robredo and Pangilinan as the “most qualified and best-prepared persons” to lead the country.
Six former DepEd Secretaries including Edilberto de Jesus, Fe Hidalgo, Mona Valisno, Jesli Lapus, Florencio Abad, and Br. Armin Luistro FSC signed the statement of support.
The signatories said leaders like Robredo and Pangilinan are what the country needs especially “at this point in our nation’s history and with the debilitating effects” of Covid-19 on education and learners.
The former officials and personnel of DepEd have chosen to endorse the Leni-Kiko tandem because they believe that “both bring solid experience and a grounded understanding of the education sector, its challenges, and what needs to be done.”
They added that a vote for them on May 9 will go beyond electing “sincere, genuine, and competent” leaders.
“A vote for them is a vote for quality education for all Filipino learners,” the statement read.
In endorsing the tandem, the signatories believe that Robredo and Pangilinan will “advocate lifelong learning for all Filipinos.”
Since both of them “understand the value of education” in every person’s life and as the foundation of the country’s development and growth, the former DepEd officials and personnel expressed optimism that the tandem will “use their clear and in-depth understanding of the education sector and of pervading systemic issues to chart the right priorities and evidence-based programs that will have a sustained positive impact” on teaching and learning.
Once elected as the country’s top officials, Robredo and Pangilinan are also expected to strengthen DepEd — the country’s largest government bureaucracy — with “honest and effective governance and learning delivery that will bring government even closer to the margins where its presence is most needed.”
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