Will upland campus open?

CTU chief administrative office for administration Jerlito Letrondo speaks on the extension campus issue.

Classes said to start today; Bebot to explain side

Will classes be held in the proposed extension campus of the Cebu Technological University (CTU) in the upland barangay of Bonbon, Cebu City today?
While construction and other activities reportedly continue inside the sports complex where the campus is said to open, its proponent Rep. Rodrigo Abellanosa of Cebu City’s south district kept silent on the question.
“We will call a press conference tomorrow (today). We need the truth to come out. Everything will be discussed. Please bear with us, we don’t want further intrigues to hurt the hopes of the prospective students,” he told Cebu Daily News yesterday.
Abellanosa had been advertising through tarpaulins in various parts of the city and the mountain barangays about the supposed ongoing enrollment of CTU’s extension campus in barangay Bonbon.
The congressman lobbied for the inclusion of the P3-million budget in the General Appropriations Act (GAA) for the extension campus.
Dilapidated
But CTU officials clarified that there is no enrollment for the extension campus.
Despite this, Bonbon barangay chairman Alexander Ibarrita claimed that construction, repair and renovation activities are still ongoing in the sports complex.
“Padayon gyud kuno sila. Ugma (today) magsugod ila klase (They said they will really continue. Their classes will start today),” Ibarrita said in a text message to Cebu Daily News yesterday.
Ibarrita, an ally of Cebu City Mayor Michael Rama, is opposed to using the barangay’s sports complex for the CTU extension campus.
He said it’s already dilapidated and dangerous for students.
‘Illegal construction’
He sought City Hall’s intervention on what he called an “illegal construction” at the sports complex last week.
The city government sent policemen and the Prevention, Restoration, Order, Beautification and Enhancement (PROBE) team to inspect the area.
Abellanosa questioned the presence of the PROBE team and the police, saying there was “no illegal construction” and that only dividers, mono bloc chairs and tables were set up at the sports complex.
The sports complex occupies a lot owned by the family of Eduardo Cabriana, an ally of the Bando Osmeña-Pundok Kauswagan (BO-PK) party.
City Legal Officer Jerone Castillo said the city government will send an inspection team to the barangay today.
Rule of law
“We received complaints from barangay officials that there are still ongoing activities there. We have to send an inspection team for us to know the real situation on the ground,” Castillo said.
He said he will also call another meeting with CTU officials and other agencies to get updates on the matter and discuss what other steps they can take.
Castillo said they are also eyeing to file a formal case against Abellanosa if they push through with the extension campus even without approval from the school’s board.
Acting Mayor Edgardo Labella said both public officials and school officials should observe the rule of law.
“If only officials follow procedure, rules and regulations, there won’t be any problem,” Labella told CDN.
Ramifications
With CTU’s pronouncement that the board has not authorized any extension campus, Labella said Abellanosa’s office should not push through with classes today.
“They know the legal ramifications if they push through,” he added.
The CTU’s Board of Regents is set to have its meeting in Manila this July.
After a meeting with Castillo last week, Jerlito Letrondo, CTU chief administrative officer for administration, said the proposed extension campus still has no approval from the board.
He said results of the admission tests taken by 90 students showed that less than half of them passed.
Courses
Letrondo said they need two classes or 80-90 students for the extension campus.
That number may go down since the examinees have to undergo interviews and review of their high school grades.
Abellanosa earlier claimed that the extension campus in Bonbon is set to be approved by the school’s Board of Regents in their July meeting.
Aside from Bonbon, the congressman said the board will also hold extension classes in Tabogon town, San Remigio, City of Naga, Pinamungajan, Oslob, Samboan and Bantayan Island.
The CTU extension campus will offer courses in Bachelor of Science in Elementary Education (BSED), Bachelor of Secondary Education (BsED) and Bachelor of Science in Information and Computer Technology (BS-ICT).