Opinion by Julian Carlos B. Gatchalian
On December 9, 2022, the 11-member Board of Regents (BOR) of the University of the Philippines (UP) selected Atty. Angelo Jimenez to be the 22nd president of the UP System. His unexpected selection was not met with much warmth as students from all constituent units of the UP System protested against his election. As his term as UP president starts this month, it is best to remember what stances he holds towards various issues and discern what a Jimenez presidency would look like in the next six years.
An interview of Jimenez with the Philippine Collegian reveals a summary of his viewpoints on certain issues. He is against the implementation of mandatory ROTC, institutionalization of the UP-DND accord, abolition of the UP College Admission Test (UPCAT), abolition of fraternities, and full face-to-face learning. He is, however, in favor of commercializing spaces around UP and is warm on the contractualization of UP workers.
As the UP president who is mandated to serve the whole UP community throughout the administration of Marcos Jr., Jimenez cannot simply be comfortable with allowing for the dissolution of the UP-DND accord. If the UP-DND accord and similar agreements are not upheld by Jimenez and his administration, we will see more encroachments on human rights and academic freedom. Jimenez should also put into high priority workers’ rights and should be one with the UP community in urging the national government to stop slashing our budget. Aside from this, Jimenez must address the problems brought about by the fully online learning setup. In addition, Jimenez should also address the lack of student housing and car-centric transportation around the campus, as well as UP students’ struggle to comply with the minimum load of 15 units.
Jimenez’s feat was a bolt from the blue. It was a collective decision that the community did not see coming and was met with protests of disapproval—the act that genuinely showed what it meant to be an Iskolar ng Bayan. The screams for explanation plead, placards of academic freedom demand, and posters of support and denouncement prevail. These are just the starting points of our obligation to remain vigilant throughout his six-year presidency, and we will closely scrutinize any policy that he enacts which are either beneficial or detrimental towards the members of our beloved university.
REFERENCES
Diaz, D. S. (2022, December 15). Full, Unedited Transcript of the ‘Fast Talk’ With Angelo Jimenez. Philippine Collegian. https://phkule.org/.../full-unedited-transcript-of-the...
Perez, A. (2023, February 10). Angelo Jimenez begins 6-year term as UP president. ABS-CBN NEWS. https://news.abs-cbn.com/.../new-up-president-angelo...
Sigales, J. (2022, December 10). Jimenez elected 22nd UP President, vows to defend academic freedom. Tinig Ng Plaridel. https://www.tinigngplaridel.net/2022/prexy22/
Subingsubing, K. (2022, December 10). Labor lawyer Jimenez is new UP president. INQUIRER.Net.https://newsinfo.inquirer.net/?p=1703564
Philippine Collegian [@phkule]. (2022, December 7). In assessing the qualifications of each #UPPrexy candidate, it is important to consider their stances on the prominent issues that… [Tweet]. Twitter. https://twitter.com/phkule/status/1600303834710282240
UP Media and Public Relations Office. (2022, December 9). Former UP Regent Angelo Jimenez to succeed Concepcion as the next UP President. University of the Philippines. https://up.edu.ph/former-up-regent-angelo-jimenez-to.../
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