Palace says VP Sara's tenure as DepEd chief a complete failure

Malacañang on Wednesday branded Vice President Sara Duterte’s leadership at the Department of Education (DepEd) as “a complete failure'' in response to the latter's remarks that the country's education system is at a ''paper and pencil'' level.

During a briefing, Palace Press Officer Claire Castro said Duterte had the chance to lead the DepEd and she should have accomplished something during that period. 

''Binigyan po siya ng pagkakataon, pinagkatiwalaan siya ng Pangulo since 2022 hanggang 2024 para maging DepEd secretary. Dalawang taon halos na siya ay dapat nagtrabaho kung anuman ang kaniyang nirereklamo, dapat natupad na po sana niya ito sa kaniyang panahon,'' Castro said.

(She was given the chance and trust of the President to be a DepEd secretary from 2022 to 2024. In those two years, she should have accomplished something.) 

''Ang pagtitiwalang ito ay sa kaniyang reklamo ngayon, nagri-reflect lamang na bilang siya ay naging DepEd secretary ay a complete failure,'' she added. 

(Her complaints reflected that her tenure as a DepEd secretary was a complete failure.)

GMA News Online asked the camp of Duterte for comment on the matter, but it has yet to reply as of posting time. 

In Kuwait, the Vice President said that while other nations have modernized their education sector, the Philippines is supposedly stuck in a paper-and-pencil level. 

Duterte said that the students in other countries are already engaged in robotics and coding. 

In 2024, Duterte quit as secretary of the DepEd and vice chairperson of the National Task Force to End Local Communist Armed Conflict (NTF-ELCAC).

In her resignation letter, Duterte said she would remain in service to the country through the various programs, activities, and projects of the Office of the Vice President. —LDF, GMA Integrated News