DepEd acts promptly to resolve class opening complaints

MANILA, Philippines – The Department of Education (DepEd) has seen a reduced number of problems since last Monday’s opening of classes in public schools.

The DepEd’s Oplan Balik Eskwela (OBE) Command Center, headed by Education Undersecretary Ramon Bacani, reported Tuesday that they had only received an additional 85 calls from the 352 calls posted as of 10 a.m. of June 1.

Kenneth Tirado, DepEd communications officer, said that from May 26 when they activated the OBE Command Center up to June 2, a total of 437 calls have been received involving complaints of alleged illegal school fee collections, requests for assistance on late enrolment and acceptance of students to classes, and various concerns.

Of the 437 calls, 435 had been acted on to the satisfaction of mostly concerned parents or guardians of public school students, Tirado said.

Education Secretary Jesli Lapus said that the OBE Command Center has gone on its “Stage 2” of operations providing prompt resolution to problems reported on school opening day by the public.

“While we have bee n addressing many of these issues even before the opening of the school year, we now have the advantage of getting fresh information from the field,” Lapus explained. “This allows us to really zero in on the schools that need our direct intervention.”

 “We thank the public for providing us with the information we need to address these issues,” he added.

Lapus explained that the Command Center is currently working on the critical complaints it had received through its hotlines and from walk-in guests. He also thanked the media for their contribution to the Balik Eskwela effort.

“The media’s role in our Balik Eskwela effort cannot be understated,” Lapus noted. “Beyond the help they’ve given us in disseminating vital back-to-school information to the public, they also provided us with first hand accounts on what is happening in the field, particularly in the schools that really require the direct intervention of our central office and regional offices.”

“We see to it that all the efforts we have been undertaking benefit our schools and our students beyond school opening,” Lapus said. “We immediately act upon the concerns brought to us primarily through our close coordination with our field offices and our Oplan Balik Eskwela partners.”

The education chief urged the public to contact the Oplan Balik Eskwela Command Center through hotlines 6361663, 6331942, 6340222, 6359817, 6363603, 6364880, 6366550, 6387529, 6387530, 6387531 and 7065332. The center, located at the DepEd Central Office in Pasig City, is also open to handle walk-in complaints and queries until tomorrow, June 5 from 7 a.m. to 6 p.m.

The public may contact DepEd through SMS by sending their name, address and query to 0919-4560027 or by texting DEPED FDBK name, address and query to 2622.