"Education must go on whether or not the people believe in the President. Let us spare the DepEd from the crossfire of politics. I have good news to those who mean well but I have bad news to those who are dysfunctional. We are always for the common good. We cannot please everybody but our decision-making process will always be based on what is fair and for the common good. Once a decision is made, an organization supports that decision. Those who don’t, time to move on," said Lapus in his speech during turnover ceremonies at the DepEd central office in Pasig City.
Lapus took over the reins of the department from Undersecretary Fe Hidalgo, who was officer-in-charge for 11 months.
Contrary to what is being insinuated by some sectors, Lapus said that all is well between him and Hidalgo.
"Undersecretary (Fe) Hidalgo and I fell in love at first sight," he quipped.
"We have nothing but meeting of minds. We have nothing but agreements on directions, on procedures, on timing, and on methodology. So, I think the DepEd was lucky that an OIC like Fe Hidalgo was appointed instead of other people who might be burning with ambition and burning with politics," he added.
Lapus also asked Hidalgo to stay at the DepEd to help him in the huge task of improving the country’s education sector.
"So, I am not in the mood to say good-bye to Undersecretary Fe Hidalgo," he said. "We must defend and restore quality education in the Philippines. If not, this will be the deep end of the Philippines because the quality of our human resources will determine the future of our country. And this is so serious."
He said a lot of his friends asked him why he accepted the job.
"Because what is at stake here is the very survival and progress of our country, especially now that we are engaged in cut-throat global competition. We have unlearned English. We seem to have unlearned it during the last decade. So, we must get our act together again before it’s too late," he explained. "And it will be my lifetime mission. My life would have full meaning if I make a little difference, if at least I was able to direct efforts towards restoring the Philippines’ world-class rating in education and literacy."
The former Tarlac lawmaker noted that the national achievement test shows that there is a problem in the achievement levels of students. As of now, he said only two out of 100 high school students show a mastery rating of 75 percent and up in achievement tests.
"The job is on our shoulders. It is a tough job. We are not just dealing with financial resources. We are dealing with quality of human resources. That’s the hardest but the most fulfilling job to do if we are able to mobilize single-mindedness in the department," he said.
He cited the need to strengthen the teaching force by providing public school teachers with a lot of teaching aids and support through distance learning, mass media, and mass communications. However, he sees the need to continue the programs, which he thinks are good but need only refining.
"At the end of the day, I will measure everybody’s performance based on the quality of the students," he said.
Lapus also vowed to work for the setting up of an achievement test for high school students entering college.
"We must open the minds of our students that the option is either to enter college or take technical courses. We must not force them to enter college if they have no aptitude for it. We must strengthen students’ exposure to technical and vocational courses while still in high school. Unfortunately, we are experiencing a disastrous cycle," he said.
Earlier, Commission on Higher Education (CHED) chairman Carlito Puno said they will tap school counselors to give students and parents seminars on how to choose college courses based on the results of the achievement test.
"They need to determine where they will excel because the market for popular jobs right now will be saturated after some years," Puno said.
CHED and the Technical Education Skills Development Authority (TESDA) have also re-implemented this school year the "ladderized system" of education in 168 education institutions nationwide.
The system will enable students to initially enroll in vocational courses, which could be credited to a possible college course.
On the issue of the meager education budget, Lapus said he would work for the passage of a supplemental budget of P7.5 billion to augment the P12 billion reenacted budget for 2006. He said he would also work for the approval of a P130 billion budget for 2007.
Lapus disclosed that DepEd and the Department of Environment and Natural Resources (DENR) would be signing a memorandum of agreement for confiscated logs to be donated to DepEd so they can make school desks.
DepEd is also pushing for the amendment of the charter of the Philippine Amusement and Gaming Corp. (Pagcor) so that 10 percent of its gross sales, or around P2.5 billion a year, will go to DepEd to be used for building classrooms. This is on top of China’s pledge to donate funds for building of 10,000 classrooms.
According to Lapus, another project they have in mind is the re-launching of the Adopt-a-School program to renew the interest and support of the private sector.
Meanwhile, the DepEd is set to conduct a survey among stakeholders in the education sector whether it would be in the best interests of the students to change the school opening from June to September.
"This is an initiative of the legislation so there will be a bill that will be processed. There will be a public hearing in the Senate. DepEd will be called. We are looking for the pros and cons. Coming from Congress, I feel a survey will be conclusive," Lapus said in an interview.
For her part, Hidalgo recalled her work as OIC of DepEd and thanked all those who supported her during her term.
Meanwhile, lawyer Domingo Alidon, president of the DepEd National Employees Union, said their group couldn’t accept Lapus as DepEd secretary because he is a politician.
He said they would continue their rallies every afternoon until they are convinced that Lapus’ promises will be fulfilled.