By Kristel Satumbaga
The Commission on Higher Education (CHED) on Monday will issue show cause orders to University of Santo Tomas and National University for their alleged training during quarantine.
CHED chairman Popoy De Vera said the directive is for the two schools to explain why sanctions should not be imposed on its officers, teaching and non-teaching personnel for its failure to comply with CHED guidelines.
This development came after CHED completed its fact-finding report on the alleged violations of Inter-Agency Task Force and CHED Advisories by UST and NU.
The reports, he added, were already submitted to the Department of Justice, which has jurisdiction over IATF rules, and to the Department of Interior and Local Government (DILG), which will deliberate if they violated local ordinances.
Upon studying UST’s internal probe, De Vera disclosed “it is clear that there was really a training done in Sorsogon involving UST basketball players.”
“The basketball players who participated, their names were included in the UST report. So I don’t think there is a question that this so-called bubble really happened,” De Vera said.
In NU’s case, De Vera said the team admitted to training in a facility outside of Metro Manila and wasn’t able to go home after lockdown was imposed. The players reportedly stayed in the dormitory.
“I don’t think there is denial in those things. Those are some of the factual events that we included in our report,” De Vera said.
De Vera also said determining the possible penalties would be “too premature at the moment” on CHED’s side until they receive the explanations of the two schools involved.
