LINGAYEN, Pangasinan – Sangguniang Panlalawigan Member Jeremy Agerico Rosario refuted the claim of Pangasinan State University (PSU) president, Dexter R. Buted, that the persona non grata slapped against him is “politically-motivated.”
In an interview after the regular session held recently, Rosario disclosed the provincial board had nothing personal against the president of the state university stressing that the board members are just doing their job.
“We just wanted to look after the welfare of the youth of Pangasinan and to end the exploitation of students at the PSU,” Rosario, the chair of committee on education of the provincial board, said.
It can be recalled that Buted had snubbed the august body which invited him four times to shed light on the alleged PSU malpractice on its OJT program, prompting the provincial board to file a resolution declaring him “persona non grata” last October 17.
Rosario said that Buted lied when he made up story that he cannot attend the second invitation of the SP because there was an ongoing parallel investigation of the PSU and the Commission on Higher Education. An official of CHED Region 1 who attended the second SP hearing on the issue, at that time, denied that they were conducting any investigation about the alleged OJT malpractices.
Rosario said that Buted had given other alibis for not attending the SP committee hearings and the question hour of SP’s regular session.
The issue stemmed from a “tell-all” allegations of Dharel dela Cruz who was among the 43 OJTs of PSU San Carlos who were illegally employed as ‘regular workers’ in Interphil Laboratories in Laguna for their supposed requirement.
Rosario cited that the students are fortunate that a whistleblower in the person of Dela Cruz, who got confined in an intensive care unit due to his work at the chemical laboratory in Laguna, stood his ground for them.
Aside from the OJT issue, the provincial board in its provincial resolution no. 505-2016 stated that the Sangguninag Panlalawigan has received information about complaints from various individuals regarding Dr. Buted’s unfair treatment of the faculty members and personnel of the PSU i.e., transfers, reorganizations, orders of suspensions without due process, and terminations from service.
The board also noted that during the recent 2016 elections, Dr. Buted “has allowed the PSU campuses and events to be used for partisan political activities of his favored political party, openly disregarding the status of the university as a state institution.”
The administration of the current PSU president who was formerly a Provincial Board Member of Batangas also received complaints for delayed release of paid uniforms, advance collection of payments without organized programs like seminars and shipboard training, among others.
Expressing confidence that the provincial board has done its job, Rosario disclosed that it will now be up to the Commission on Higher Education (CHED) to conduct a thorough investigation since state colleges are under its jurisdiction.
Board member Rosario said that copies of the board resolution against Buted have been sent to Senator Paolo Benigno “Bam” Aquino IV (Chairman, Senate committee on Education, Arts and Culture); Congresswoman Evelina Escudero (Chairman, committee on Basic Education and Culture); Pangasinan Congressmen Jesus D. Celeste, LeopoldoBataoil, Rosemarie “Baby” Arenas, Christopher P. de Venecia, Amado T. Espino, Jr., and Marlyn L. Primicias-Agabas; Dr. Patricia B. Licuanan (chairperson of Commission on Higher Education); and Dr. Dexter R. Buted.
By Dexter A. See