BONTOC, Mountain Province – Kalinga Rep. and newly appointed Mountain Province caretaker Rep. Allen Jesse Mangaoang revealed that one of the priority legislations that he will have to follow-up will be the conversion of the State-run Mountain Province State Polytechnic College (MPSPC) into a full pledged university in the future.
Mangaoang, who was recently appointed by House Speaker Pantaleon Alvarez as the province’s caretaker congressman, said he will personally look into the concerns of MPSPC for it to comply with the standards of a university so that he can personally follow-up the matter with the Commission on Higher Education (CHED) and other concerned government agencies.
“We have to admit that there have been drastic changes in the country’s education system which must be provided by both the private and public schools. We need to equip our schools with the state-of-the-art equipment and provide adequate training for the school personnel to cope with the changes in the system and teach our children using the latest sources of information, among others,” Mangaoang stressed.
The lawmaker claimed education is so far the best inheritance that parents and guardians could give to their children because it will never be taken away from them but there is a need for concerned government agencies to provide the necessary facilities so that the youth will be able to cope with the current trends in education.
According to him, converting MPSPC into a university will help poor but deserving students acquire a higher level of education with the least cost because of the implementation of the free tertiary education program plus the fact that they will no longer need to travel outside the province just to get the same quality education because the government is making sure that state universities and colleges are highly competitive with the top caliber private schools in Baguio City and Metro Manila.
If MPSPC will be converted into a university in the coming years, it will become the fourth state university in the Cordillera after the establishment of the Benguet State University, Ifugao State University and the Kalinga State University.
Mangaoang said one of his priority meetings when he will visit the province soon is to discuss pertinent issues and concerns with MPSPC officials to be able to formulate a strategy that will ensure the long overdue conversion of the state college into a university once it will be able to comply with the prescribed standards coupled with the enactment of the necessary legislation.
He urged MPSPC officials to prepare whatever pertinent requirements needed by the administration and concerned government agencies so that it will be easier for them to discuss matters once he meets with them in his visit to Mountain Province.
Magnaoang admitted that he has to work double time and budget his precious time to attend to the needs of his constituents in Kalinga and the people of Mountain Province considering that there is a need for him to balance the situation as he also values the people of Mountain Province considering that his mother is from Sagada town.
By HENT
