"This is Secretary Leonor Briones."
"This is Secretary Leonor Briones."
As a curtain of darkness was about fall on the city of Manila in late afternoon of January 30, 1970, a young woman stood on top of a firetruck earlier seized by militant youth and students along Mendiola St. leading to Malacañan Palace after a protest rally at Plaza Miranda in nearby Quiapo distric. She was captured on camera wearing what seemed to be a tubao, or native handkerchief tied around her head, her left arm pointing in the direction of the seat of political power and quite possibly shouting at the top of her lungs “Sugod!” (Attack!) or even “Makibaka, huwag matakot!” (Fight, be not afraid!)
That January 30 rally was the second street protest that later came to be known as the opening salvos of the First Quarter Storm of 1970. It was participated in by various groups from the moderate to the radical, and the woman who was photographed seemingly leading the charge on Malacañan Palace that fateful afternoon and evening was none other than Leonor “Liling” Magtolis, who was identified with a militant group that by then already had serious ideological differences with the national democrats led by the Kabataang Makabayan (KM).
The same woman who went banging on the gates of the presidential palace 50 years ago is now the Secretary of Education under the Duterte administration.
While the tumultuous siege of the seat of political power in 1970 did not lead to regime change until after the EDSA People Power Revolt 16 years later, Briones pursued her vision of sweeping change in Philippine society through other means than street protests.
Now, as Education Secretary since 2016, she’s in charge of molding the minds of young Filipinos even as she herself turned 80 this year (she was born in 1940, just before the outbreak of the Second World War a year later.)
So how has she been doing in her latest job?
If the latest nationwide survey conducted by Pulse Asia is any gauge, Briones has been performing very well at the helm of the Department of Education (DepEd).
In fact, the polling firm’s “Ulat ng Bayan” survey conducted in September 14-20 showed that DepEd obtained the highest net approval rating of 73 percent among line agencies in the Executive branch while Briones had the top net approval rating among the Cabinet members with 60 percent.
Public awareness of Secretary Briones also grew to 93 percent from 75 percent, or a significant increase of 18 percentage points from last year in the National Capital Region, Luzon, and the Visayas. Her performance approval rose in the rural areas of the country from 62 percent to 78 percent or 16 percentage points from the last survey.
The survey results, Briones said, “only shows that more Filipinos appreciate the commitment and effort of the Department in offering learning opportunities and hope amidst these uncertain times…We will use this trust of our people as motivation in pushing for more reforms in basic education.”
The Education Secretary thanked the teachers, students, parents, and partners for their overwhelming support: “The past months were not easy for education but the whole community rallied behind the Department for learning to continue.”
The survey revealed that a majority of Filipino (60 percent) agree with the Department’s decision to open School Year 2020-2021. A quarter (25 percent) of the respondents disagreed while 15 percent were undecided. It also showed more residents in rural areas (65 percent) agreeing to open the school year than those who reside in urban areas (54 percent).
Briones has given assurances that DepEd would continue to pursue the mission to deliver basic education even amid the raging Covid-19 pandemic, and the unfair brickbats thrown her way by critics.
Briones leads DepEd with impressive academic credentials and ample work experience in government, the private sector and civil society.
She obtained her Bachelor of Business Administration degree from Silliman University in 1958 and her Master of Public Administration degree from the University of the Philippines (UP) Diliman in 1967. In 1968, she acquired her post-graduate diploma, with honors, at Leeds University in England. In 1984, she earned a certificate in Policy for Public Enterprises from the Institute for International Development of Harvard University.
Prior to joining the Duterte Cabinet, Briones served as National Treasurer during the Estrada administration. She also served as consultant to the Senate of the Philippines, Asian Development Bank and the United Nations Development Program, and was the lead convenor of Social Watch Philippines. She also sat as chairman of the board of trustees of Silliman University.
The UP Board of Regents (BOR), the university’s highest policy-making body, formally conferred upon Briones in 2012 the rank of professor emeritus of public administration.
Briones has navigated the whole spectrum of fighting for social change from behind the barricades 50 years ago to actually working within the system. It’s been a long journey for her, but it’s the nation’s youth who really stand to benefit from her rigorous academic training and long experience in and out of government over the years.
ernhil@yahoo.com