Duterte: Educator DepEd chief ‘not required’ but has to be a manager, leader
Vice President Sara Duterte said her successor must have leadership and management skills, not necessarily a background in education.
In an interview with reporters, Duterte responded in the negative when asked whether the new Department of Education (DepEd) secretary must have a background in education, explaining the role is more about leadership and management.
“The position of the secretary is a position of trust and confidence,” Duterte explained. “Saka pangalawa, walang nakalagay na requirements para sa isang education secretary [There are no specified requirements for an education secretary].”
Duterte noted that in other Southeast Asian countries, not all Education secretaries have backgrounds in education.
“In fact, dito sa Southeast Asia, kung makikita ninyo, hindi lahat ng education secretaries are from the education sector [In fact, here in Southeast Asia, if you look around, not all education secretaries are from the education sector],” she said.
Duterte highlighted that the critical qualities for the DepEd Secretary include being a strong leader and an effective manager.
“Unang-una talaga, kapag secretary ka, kailangan talaga isa kang leader at isa kang manager [First and foremost, when you’re a secretary, you really need to be both a leader and a manager],” she said.
Duterte’s stance sits across industry calls to appoint an expert with education experience to the leadership at DepEd, the Philippines’ largest bureaucracy that oversees millions of students, educators and staff.
The Teachers’ Dignity Coalition has urged President Ferdinand “Bongbong” Marcos, Jr. to choose one with experience teaching at a public school. The Alliance of Concerned Teachers shares the sentiment and also warned against putting a politician at the helm.
Duterte announced her resignation as DepEd secretary on June 19, effective July 19. She said she is focused on ensuring a smooth transition to her successor.
“Sa ngayon nakatutok tayo sa transition ng DepEd from me to the new secretary so let us focus on that before tayo mag-discuss ng iba pang bagay [We are focused on the transition of the Department of Education from me to the new secretary, so let us focus on that before discussing other matters],”
