SPEAKER Ferdinand Martin G. Romualdez backed the Department of Education’s (DepEd) partnership with Security Bank Foundation Inc. (SBFI) and Security Bank Corporation (SBC) in mentoring public school principals, calling it a significant step toward improving education quality in the country.
Romualdez stressed the importance of equipping principals with leadership and management skills, which they can pass on to teachers to enhance student outcomes. “This is a critical collaboration between government and the private sector to transform our education system. Our principals serve as frontline leaders of teachers and stewards of students, and empowering them means empowering the future of our children,” he said.
He commended Education Secretary Sonny Angara for pursuing the initiative in line with President Ferdinand Marcos Jr.’s directive to maximize public-private partnerships. “Secretary Angara’s proactive leadership in forging this partnership shows his strong commitment to the President’s vision of an education system that is modern, inclusive, and responsive to the needs of our learners,” Romualdez said.
Last week, DepEd signed a memorandum of agreement with SBFI and SBC to expand the Mentoring Future Leaders for Nation-Building Program. Twenty-nine school principals from across the country will join a three-year program in collaboration with Ateneo de Manila University, De La Salle Philippines, the University of Bristol, and The HEAD Foundation of Singapore. The initiative aims to blend local expertise with international best practices to boost school leadership, professional growth, and community engagement.
Security Bank has invested P1.9 billion in education, including P237 million in 2024. Its “Build a School, Build a Nation” program has built 845 classrooms, repaired 449, trained more than 36,000 teachers, and mentored over 170 principals nationwide. Romualdez urged more private sector participation and emphasized that the House of Representatives remains committed to supporting education through budgets, legislation, and oversight. “The House is united with the President in building a Bagong Pilipinas where every Filipino learner has access to quality education,” he said.
Meanwhile, the Commission on Elections (Comelec) expressed support for Senate Minority Leader Vicente Sotto III’s bill to amend the country’s 30-year-old party-list law. Comelec Chairman George Garcia said Republic Act 7941, signed in 1995, needs updating. “This clarification and change are timely and long been awaited. We strongly support this bill,” Garcia said, adding that the poll body has prepared recommendations.
Election watchdog Kontra Daya also welcomed the proposal. Convenor Danilo Arao said, “We encourage Sotto and other legislators to refer not just to our past statements but also to our past data sets on the party-list groups that participated in the previous election cycles. Our research provides empirical proof of how the rich and powerful have reduced the party-list system as mere additional seats that are theirs for the taking.”
Sotto’s bill seeks to restore the party-list system’s original intent of ensuring genuine representation for the marginalized and underrepresented.
