Naninindigan si Northern Samar Representative Paul Daza sa kaniyang rebelasyon kaugnay sa hindi paggamit ng tama sa Higher Education Development Fund (HEDF) na hawak ng Commission on Higher Education (CHED).
Ito’y sa kabila ng pahayag ni CHED Chairperson Prospero De Vera na walang anomalya sa nasabing pondo.
” I maintain my position that Chairman De Vera is not a responsible steward of the resources to uplift our country’s most vulnerable citizens – the poorest of the poor. These are our citizens who are in need of every avenue for assistance that enables a better life for them and their families,” pahayag ni Cong. Daza.
Sinabi ni Daza na bukas siya sa pakikipag-usap kay Chairman de Vera para pag-usapan ang nasabing asunto para magkaroon ng solusyon.
Aminado si Daza na ang HEDF ay hindi isang sholarship fund kundi ginagamit ito para palakasin ang Higher Education Institutions’s (HEI) capabilities para i-improve ang education standards.
Ipinunto ni Daza na siya ay nababahala dahil batay sa datos, nasa P10 billion na 2021 HEDF ay hindi pa nagagastos.
” I have serious concerns regarding the utilization of this fund. Data shows that PhP 10 billion of the 2021 HEDF remains unspent, sitting idly in the coffers,” pahayag ng mambabats.
Sinabi ni Daza na kapag may pondo na inilaan para sa nasabing programa subalit hindi nagagamit ito ay isang kaso ng mismanagement.
” It may look good on paper that the CHED did not spend PhP 10 billion, but the real consequence of that is the Filipino people were short-changed PhP 10 billion because it was not used to serve their needs,” punto ni Cong. Daza.
Sa ulat ng DSWD sa Higher Education house panel na nuong 2019 nagsumite sila ng listahan na mahigit isang milyon Pantawid Pamilyang Pilipino Program (4Ps) students sa CHED subalit 7,000 laban ang binigyan ng suporta.
Dagdag pa ng DSWD na sa kasalukuyang taon nasa mahigit 700,000.00 senior high school students sa ilalim ng 4Ps program ang graduating at mag-aaral na sa kolehiyo.
Ayon kay Daza, kasalukuyang nahaharap sa malaking problema sa edukasyon.
Sa datos, ang tertiary education dropout rate sa bansa ay nasa 25% hanggang 30% isa sa pinaka mataas sa Asya, ang dahilan dito ay dahil sa pinansiyal na isyu.
” I have defended the budget of the CHED for the past couple of years, in the august halls of Congress, during those grueling yet important budget hearings. I fervently believe that the CHED is a key agency in giving the poor more opportunities to escape poverty, especially after it was empowered by RA 10931 (The Universal Access to Quality Tertiary Education Act).
After seeing their underutilization of this budget–which also equates to, in my mind, a lack of compassion–I can’t help but regret taking up the cudgels for them in the House,” dagdag pa ni Daza.
Umaasa si Daza na bigyang pansin ito ng CHED para makatulong sa mga mahihirap na mga estudyante.
Inihayag din ng mambabatas na bukas ang kaniyang pinto sa pakikipag-usap kay Chairman De Vera.
” I hope that the good Chairperson would find it in his heart to use the power and responsibility that he was given to answer the plight of the poor, underprivileged, and undereducated. He can implement creative solutions to reallocate the unspent funds to fill a dire need for those under the 4Ps; not just for their tuition fees but also for their needs in their daily lives as students. Let’s come together with the same lens, through the eyes of the poorest Filipinos. Yes, there are bureaucratic procedures and difficulties to hurdle. No one is in a better position to improve these procedures and provide for students whose futures should not be at risk because they have to work to live,” pahayag ng mambabatas.
