State college eyed in Consolacion

CEBU, Philippines - Representative Jonas Cortes is seeking for the establishment of Consolacion State College and Cordova National High School, both in the sixth district of the Province of Cebu.

Cortes has filed House Bill No. 5306 which seeks the conversion of Consolacion Public College (CPC) in the municipality of Consolacion into a state college.

He also filed House Bill No. 5307 which seeks the conversion of Cabangahan NHS-Cordova Annex in the municipality of Cordova into an independent NHS to be called as the Cordova NHS. The school’s main campus is in Consolacion town.

Cortes said converting CPC into Consolacion State College will ensure its fiscal autonomy, enhance its academic standards, and provide accessible and affordable but quality education to poor but deserving students.

The local government of Consolacion established the CPC with the objective of providing accessible and affordable tertiary, vocational, and technical education to the youth in the municipality.

“With the conversion of the Consolacion Public College into a state college, the author seeks to secure adequate support and appropriate funds from the national budget to ensure that the institution as the necessary facility, personnel and instructional materials which area at par with other tertiary learning institutions,” Cortes said.

On the other hand, Cabangahan NHS-Cordova Annex has experienced a surge in enrolment since it started more than a decade ago with just 198 enrollees giving the town’s youth access to free secondary education.

Cortes said the resources of the school are now found to be inadequate to meet its growing needs especially that it is only an extension of the Cabangahan NHS in Consolacion.

“Converting the school into a separate national high school independent from its mother school would certainly provide a regular source of funds for the school to meet its growing needs,” Cortes said.

HB 5306 is now pending before the House Committee on Higher and Technical Education, while HB 5307 is pending before the House Committee on Basic Education and Culture.

“NO EFFECT”

The House Bill 4117, which seeks to establish Mandaue City as a lone district, will not have an effect on the development of the sixth legislative district, according to Governor Hilario Davide III.

The sixth district is composed of Mandaue and the towns of Consolacion and Cordova.

Davide said Consolacion and Cordova towns can stand even without the Mandaue City with their growing economies.

He cited the P9.2-billion Cebu International Container Port project in Tayud, Consolacion, and the P27-billion Cebu-Cordova Link Expressway.

Mandaue City, on the other hand, should be separated from the current sixth district and is in fact long overdue, said Davide.

The city, he said, is dubbed as the industrial capital of the province.

Consolacion Mayor Teresa Alegado said they support the passage of the bill, which is also advantageous for the town. — Gregg M. Rubio,with Diana Rose Ompad and Dulcelyn Insong (FREEMAN)