CHED: RP has too many universities

MANILA, Philippines – The Commission on Higher Education (CHED) is zeroing in on the excessive number of higher education institutions (HEIs) in the country as one of the major causes of the deteriorating quality of higher education.

Dr. Patricia Licuanan, CHED chair, said the proliferation of colleges and universities offering degree programs is making it hard for CHED to check on the quality of programs offered to students.

“We have too many HEIs offering too many programs,” Licuanan told teachers gathered at the University of Asia and the Pacific auditorium yesterday morning for the Metrobank Foundation’s launch of celebrations in connection with World Teachers’ Day on Oct. 5.

Licuanan said as of their latest count, there are 2,180 HEIs nationwide, quite a big number considering the country’s size and population of college students.

Of this number, Licuanan said 88 percent are private institutions while the remaining 12 percent are state colleges and universities.

The CHED chief said they will check on the quality of courses offered by all these HEIs to identify which schools should be encouraged to discontinue certain programs, if not close down altogether.

Licuanan noted that a particular problem was the continued establishment of colleges and universities by local government units that are not equipped to set up academic institutions.

Licuanan, former president of Miriam College, said the commission would be looking into these LGU-established and operated schools.

Meantime, a senior lawmaker warned yesterday that over 14,000 public schools all over the country could be considered as squatters as they sit on untitled lands.

“In other words, these (public) schools are mere squatters on lands that government still has no legal ownership of,” Aurora Rep. Juan Edgardo Angara said in filing House Bill 486 which requires the summary titling of all lands being utilized as public school sites.

Angara, chair of the House committee on higher education, said there are about 8,011 untitled public school lands and 6,257 unregistered public school lands throughout the country.

He said most of these school sites are owned by local government units or are leased from private individuals, while some were donated by virtue of verbal agreements between the Department of Education (DepEd) and the landowners.

“When the landowner dies, this verbal agreement does not have any bearing and the heirs eventually claim ownership over the land, which results in court litigation,” Angara said.

Under the bill, to be known as the “Department of Education Special Land Registration Act,” all lands being used as school sites and were acquired either by purchase, donation or exchange but their titles were not yet perfected, shall be registered under the DepEd with the Land Registration Authority (LRA).

However, the registration of lands being used as public school sites by mere tolerance of the landowners will require written manifestation from them of their intention to donate or to sell the property to DepEd.

In case of refusal of the landowners to sell the land, the property will be subjected to expropriation proceedings, its value to be determined by the appropriate court.

In case the government failed to gain favorable judgment, no eviction should be made within five years. –Rainier Allan Ronda (The Philippine Star) With Paolo Romero