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No classes till no Covid-19 vaccines: solon

By Marna Dagumboy Del Rosario

May 21, 2020, 8:22 pm

<p><strong>CLASS SUSPENSION</strong>. Deputy House Speaker and Pampanga 3rd district Rep. Aurelio Gonzales proposes the deferment of the reopening of both public and private schools until a vaccine against Covid-19 is developed. He said on Thursday (May 21, 2020) that Resolution No. 876 which calls for the postponement of classes was referred to Covid-19 Committee co-chaired by Speaker Alan Peter Cayetano and Majority Leader Martin Romualdez. <em>(Contributed photo)</em></p>

CLASS SUSPENSION. Deputy House Speaker and Pampanga 3rd district Rep. Aurelio Gonzales proposes the deferment of the reopening of both public and private schools until a vaccine against Covid-19 is developed. He said on Thursday (May 21, 2020) that Resolution No. 876 which calls for the postponement of classes was referred to Covid-19 Committee co-chaired by Speaker Alan Peter Cayetano and Majority Leader Martin Romualdez. (Contributed photo)

CITY OF SAN FERNANDO, Pampanga – Deputy House Speaker and Pampanga 3rd district Rep. Aurelio “Dong” Gonzales has proposed the suspension of the reopening of both public and private schools until a vaccine against coronavirus disease 2019 (Covid-19) is developed.

In a statement, Gonzales said on Thursday that Resolution No. 876 which calls for the postponement of classes was referred Tuesday to the Covid-19 Committee co-chaired by Speaker Alan Peter Cayetano and Majority Leader Martin Romualdez.

The resolution, he said, seeks to express the collective sense of the House of Representatives for the Department of Education (DepEd), Commission on Higher Education (CHED), Technical Education and Skills Development Authority (TESDA), and Inter-Agency Task Force for the Management of Emerging Infectious Diseases (IATF) to suspend the resumption of classes “until and unless a vaccine against Covid-19 has been discovered and included in the Philippine national drug formulary.”

Gonzales said despite the Covid-19 pandemic, the DepEd has set the official opening of the incoming school year on Aug. 24, 2020 until Apr. 30, 2021.

He said that although the education department encourages distance learning through the Internet at the start of the school calendar, this is not possible in the provinces where telecommunication signals are weak.

Even in many highly urbanized cities and towns, he said internet and mobile phone communication is not reliable.

“Face-to-face classes would have to be conducted sooner than later if we want our children to learn. And here lies the problem, since it would be hard to require physical distancing in classrooms, especially in public schools, where a class is composed of no fewer than 40 students,” Gonzales said.

He invoked the constitutional provision mandating the state to protect the health of its citizens in seeking the postponement of the reopening of schools.

“With the growing Covid-19 threat which is still present and imminent to the safety of our citizens, especially our children, it is imperative that we take all precautions and preventive actions to protect our people from the disease,” he added.

Covered by Gonzales’ suspension proposal are classes in all schools, whether public or private, from pre-school to college, including vocational education and training. (PNA)

 

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