Espino defends order suspending classes
LINGAYEN—Asserting that he used his “situational judgment call”, Governor Amado Espino Jr. defended his decision to suspend classes in the pre-elementary and elementary schools last August 3 even without a typhoon signal raised over the province.
The governor offered to explain his decision after many officials of schools and the Department of Education (DepEd) expressed surprised by his order that did not follow the established protocol for suspending classes.
Espino said he suspended classes because at that time, the early morning of August 3, many schools in the province were already underwater caused by unrelenting monsoon rains for days.
The governor said that despite the fact that there was no storm signal, the provincial government had the discretion to suspend classes to respond to an obtaining circumstance.
“Inisip natin ang kapakanan ng mga estudyante. Sa tagal ng ulan, nakalubog na sa baha ang mga eskwelahan kaya nagdesisyon ako na isuspende ang mga klase para maprotektahan ang kalagayan at kalusugan ng mga bata,” Espino said.
He said he did what he believed to be right even without consulting with the DepEd.
Based on existing protocol on the occurrence of weather disturbances, only the mayor or the school division has the authority to suspend classes.
In Pangasinan where there are five school divisions and the governor is the top official and chairman of the Provincial Disaster Risk Reduction Monitoring Council (PDRRMC), the provincial government said it has the prerogative to make such a decision.
In a related development, the Department of Education has issued a protocol regarding suspension of classes. Under a storm signal number one, classes for the pre-school and elementary levels are automatically suspended; storm signal number two directs suspension of classes up to the secondary level; and storm signal number three suspends classes in all educational levels.
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