LINGAYEN- Lingayen – After 14 years, the provincial board finally agreed to formally establish two schools divisions in the province.

Vice Gov. Oscar Lambino, presiding officer of the Sangguniang Panlalawigan and one of the principal authors of the resolution said that the move is beneficial “for our people and our province”.

Second district Board Member Von Mark Mendoza, co-author of the resolution, said the separation will result in more items for new teachers that will redound to the efficient delivery of educational services.

Finally approved after series of committee hearings and long deliberations, the resolution will now give legal meaning to the rationalization of the separate supervision, administration and management of the schools in a big province like Pangasinan. They added that this is also in consonance with Republic Act 5754 passed in June 1969 titled “An Act Constituting The First And Second Representative Districts of the Province of Pangasinan Into Separate Schools Division”.

They added that the said law further states that a new division shall have one schools division superintendent and such other personnel shall be appointed in accordance with existing laws.

It may be recalled that the schools division of Pangasinan was internally separated in 1991 by virtue of an office order issued by then Regional Director Gloria Lazam of the regional office in La Union and approved by then Education Sec. Isidro Cariño.

This paved the way for two schools divisions called Pangasinan 1 based here which covers districts , 2 and 3 and Pangasinan 2 covering districts 4, 5 and 6.

But while there are two divisions, there is only one superintendent who has an item while the other is appointed in an officer-in-charge capacity only; the other officials like district supervisors were divided and assigned in the two divisions, together with the other personnel.

The formal split up will also pave the way for promotions of qualified education officials and the filling up of positions vacated by them so there will be movements in the positions of personnel, Lambino said.

The yearly budget of P4 million for MOOE (maintenance, operating and other expenses) and P16 million for personnel services released by the national government for Pangasinan schools division is divided by the two divisions.

The resolution is now expected to pave the way for the eventual release of two separate budgets for the two divisions, according to Lambino and Mendoza.

Assistant Secretary Vilma Labrador told Pangasinan officials in one of the committee hearings that the Department of Budget has withheld the release of the budget for the said divisions pending the passage of said resolution.

Dadacay explained his no vote, saying that the resolution would violate the General Appropriations Act passed every year which recognizes the existence of one schools division of Pangasinan, and that maintaining two schools divisions in Pangasinan would entail more funds.

Fourth district Board Member John Agerico Rosario, who also voted no to the resolution, said “I do not believe Pangasinan needs to have two schools division bureaucracies when provinces like Cebu and Negros Occidental which are by far bigger than ours can manage with only one division.” – EVA

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