SURALLAH, South Cotabato (MindaNews / 28 March) – Efforts to convert a state college here into the province’s first state university has breezed through second reading at the House of Representatives.
Senior Deputy Speaker Ferdinand Hernandez (South Cotabato, 2nd district), announced Friday that House Bill (HB) 8627 is now set for third and final reading when sessions resume next month.
Hernandez is the author of HB 8627 or “An Act Converting the South Cotabato State College in the Municipality of Surallah, Province of South Cotabato into a State University to be Known as the ‘South Cotabato State University.’”
“I’m happy the bill hurdled second reading in line with our efforts to enhance the quality of education in the province. This measure will open wider access and opportunity for our youths to achieve their dreams,” he said in Filipino.
South Cotabato Gov. Reynaldo Tamayo Jr. called the move a “major milestone” in expanding access to quality, inclusive education for the province’s youth.
The South Cotabato State College (SCSC) in Barangay Dajay, Surallah town started operations in 1975 as the Surallah National Agricultural School (SUNAS). Efforts to turn the SCSC into a state university have gained ground in the House of Representatives. MindaNews photo by BONG S. SARMIENTO
In a statement, Tamayo noted the conversion will greatly benefit students by increasing the institution’s budget and broadening the range of academic programs available.
“This is a big help for our youth because it will lead to a budget increase that will enable the school to offer more courses. It will also greatly enhance the implementation of our free education program,” he added in Filipino.
He stressed that with free tertiary education offered by the government, financial barriers should no longer prevent South Cotabateños from pursuing higher education and earning a university degree.
Tamayo lauded Hernandez for sponsoring the bill. Both are members of the Partido Federal ng Pilipinas.
Hernandez said that Senator Loren Legarda, chair of the Senate’s Committee on Higher, Technical and Vocational Education, agreed to file a counterpart measure at the Upper Chamber.
Last January, Legarda, who was here as keynote speaker for the city’s Hinugyaw Festival, vowed to include the conversion of the South Cotabato State College (SCSC) into a university as one of her priority legislative measures.
Legarda also pledged to provide counterpart funds for the construction of a student dormitory once the school becomes a state university.
The SCSC was formerly known as the Surallah National Agricultural School (SUNAS), which started as a secondary agricultural school on June 25, 1975 by virtue of Republic Act 5704.
The Parents-Teachers Association acquired and donated a 16-hectare property in Barangay Dajay to the then Department of Education, Culture and Sports (DECS) for the community’s dreams to establish an agricultural school in Surallah town.
In 2018, SUNAS was converted into a state college, SCSC, also through the initiative of Hernandez. (Bong S. Sarmiento / MindaNews)
