MANILA, Philippines — House Deputy Minority Leader and ACT Teachers Party-list Rep. Antonio Tinio has lambasted Vice President Sara Duterte for criticizing the state of the Philippine education system, accusing her of being “the worst DepEd secretary ever.”
Tinio stated on Tuesday, August 19, in response to Duterte’s recent remark that Philippine education remains stuck at the “paper and pencil” stage.
“Vice President Duterte has the audacity to criticize the education system when she herself is the worst DepEd secretary ever,” Tinio said, stressing that Duterte failed to deliver on expectations during her stint as Department of Education (DepEd) chief from June 2022 to July 2024.
“Walang karapatan magreklamo ang taong hindi nagtrabaho (People who don’t work have no right to complain),” he added.
The Makabayan bloc lawmaker cited a Congressional Policy and Budget Research Department (CPBRD) report showing low budget utilization under Duterte’s leadership.
Disbursement rates for textbooks and learning materials delivery were only between 11 to 17 percent in 2023 and 2024.
“How can she complain about our students lacking access to modern technology when she couldn’t even ensure they had basic textbooks and learning materials?” Tinio said.
He also pointed to Commission on Audit (COA) findings showing that DepEd under Duterte completed just 192 of its 6,379 targeted classrooms in 2023.
“Mas inatupag pa niya ang confidential funds sa DepEd sa halip ng learning crisis (She focused more on DepEd’s confidential funds than the learning crisis). You are definitely the worst DepEd secretary ever!” Tinio remarked.
The solon likewise criticized Duterte over the 48 percent implementation of school-based feeding programs and billions of pesos in unused education funds.
“Ang mga batang gutom at walang aklat, paano matututo ng robotics at coding? (How can children who are hungry and without books learn robotics and coding?)” Tinio asked.
He added that Duterte’s recent statements about students who cannot read reflect her own shortcomings as education secretary.
“The UNICEF statistics she cites are an indictment of her own performance, not just the educational system,” he said.