Bestlink College didn't apply for off-campus activities following Bataan incident—CHED
The Commission on Higher Education (CHED) said Bestlink College of the Philippines did not apply for off-campus activities following an incident in January when students allegedly walked for hours late at night to return to their buses during its founding anniversary celebration in Bataan.
The incident prompted students to take their grievances to social media, with CHED ultimately launching an investigation and issuing a show cause order to the Quezon City-based private school last Jan. 27 with a Feb. 3 deadline.
"Bago kami mag issue ng show cause order, we also checked with our regional office kung nakapag-file ba sila ng application," ABS-CBN News quoted CHED Executive Director Cinderella Filipina Jaro as saying. "Based sa aming records, before that happened, wala silang submission ng application."
A 2017 CHED memorandum order on off-campus activities states that higher education institutions (HEIs) must follow a checklist of requirements before, during, and after the off-campus activity.
These include curriculum, destination, handbook or manual, consent of the parents or guardian, medical clearance, personnel-in-charge, first aid kit, fund service, insurance, mobility of students, coordination with local government units, and activities (before); list of personnel, list of attendance, and contract of service (during); and learning journals, assessment report, expenditure report, and debriefing of concerned faculty to students (after).
Jaro noted that students must be informed about off-campus activities in their handbook, including how much they must pay and what their attendance to such activities means.
CHED pointed out that HEIs must not require students to join off-campus activities. They must have an alternative to acquiring the same competency and skill from the activity in question.
Bestlink allegedly required students to attend the founding anniversary celebration or suffer an incomplete or failing grade.
In a statement on Jan. 29, Bestlink dismissed reports of the incident as "disinformation" and "[does] not reflect what had actually happened on the ground at the time."
It claimed that such disinformation "was deliberately made by some quarters, with the intent to publicly tarnish the good image and reputation of our esteemed institution."
Bestlink said students weren't forced to walk toward the buses but voluntarily did so to reach them quicker. They were also made aware of the situation and where to find the vehicles and concert ground exits.
The school apologized for the "unforeseen circumstances in the coordination of the event and transport services providers hired," saying it "fully [sympathizes] with the students for what they went through."
“We wish to emphasize that the Administrators have always put utmost priority and consideration to the safety and welfare of the students, before, during, and after the event,” Bestlink said.
If Bestlink misses the show cause order deadline, CHED will have to come up with a decision based on the documents they have now.
Bestlink already caught controversy before.
In February 2017, a bus carrying students for a camping trip in Rizal lost its brakes and crashed into an electric post, killing 15 individuals—including the driver—and injuring 40 students.
CHED issued a moratorium on field trips and lifted it in December of that year.