Lawyers find K12 unconstitutional

By ROCKY NGALOB
www.nordis.net

BAGUIO CITY — Debuting new breed of people’s lawyer Howard Chan from University of Baguio with his mentors from the National Union of People’s Lawyers (NUPL) Baguio-Benguet chapter presented key points to University union leaders, professors and students on the unconstitutionality of the newly signed K-12 law as they prepare to file a petition for a review of the law.

The lawyers hope to pull a Temporary Restraining Order (TRO) thru from our high court to hold off its implementation on this school opening and allow the Court time to study the legal issues and doubts being raised on the K12 scheme as a better program to educate the Filipino people.

Quoting Troy Colmenares in his presentation, Chan disclosed that the K-12 did not follow legal procedures of the legislative branch prior to its so-called passage into law. He cited that the amendments made in Congress were not inserted in the enrolled bill signed by the President BS Aquino.

These amendments according to Chan were done by the lawmakers in the joint explanation of the conference committee which then were written in the Senate Journal. However, these amendments did not make it to the enrolled bill instead entirely different entries were added and not that entered in the Senate Journal No. 52 of January 30, 2013.

He added further that the passage of K12 law violated the three-reading rule required by law. According to him, certain provisions were made and added after the third reading of the bill on K12 which our law strictly prohibits. “Congress committed grave abuse of discretion amounting to lack or excess of jurisdiction by allowing methods or forms, through the insertions and deletions made in the K12 bill, which enabled the President of the Philippines to usurp the powers vested only in Congress,” said Chan.

He added that to hold the erroneous enrolled bill has become law would be to sacrifice truth for fiction and bring about mischievous consequences not intended by the law-making body.

“Aside from congress, BS Aquino also committed grave abuse of discretion by usurping the power vested only in Congress with his approval of K12 containing insertions and deletions that did not undergo the proper law-making procedure”, said Chan.

He added that BS Aquino deliberately allowed the process of ‘dagdag bawas’ by not vetoing the said erroneous enrolled bill.

Before the signing of the K12 law on May 15, 2013, an earlier Dep Ed order number 31 entitled ‘Policy Guidelines on the Implementation of Grades one to 10 of the K12 Basic Education Curriculum Effective School Year 2012-2013’ was devised and then signed into law by the executive.

According to lawyer Cheryl Daytec, NUPL’s Baguio-Benguet Deputy Secretary General, the Dep Ed order number 31 is another violation to our constitution. She pointed out that the power on legislation as stated in our constitution is vested in the Congress of the Philippines which consists of the Senate and a House of Representatives, and not the executive branch that includes the Dep Ed.

She added the signing of the Dep Ed Order Number 31 has no legal basis because it was signed on April 17, 2012, a year earlier than the K12 signing.

She added, the K12 law violated Article VI section 26 of the Philippine Constitution and the Doctrine of Separation of Powers.

“We must hold the supremacy of our constitution because any act or law that was signed contrary to the provisions of our 1987 constitution is void”, said Daytec.

While the legal battle is in full swing, teachers from the Alliance of Concerned Teacher (ACT) in Baguio will be joining the nationwide protest against K12 on this 2015 class opening.

“While we wait for developments from the legal arena against K12, we will continue to storm our streets in protest and to register our vehement opposition to the K12 scheme,” said Joel Capulong of ACT.

NUPL Baguio-Benguet shall be with the teachers on the June 1 show of force in protest of the K12 system at the Baguio Central School.