Keeping the Captain: Why Angara Must Stay to Save DepEd’s Sinking Ship

By Louis ‘Barok’ C Biraogo — May 26, 2025

WHEN Senator Juan Edgardo “Sonny” Angara seized the helm of the Philippines’ Department of Education (DepEd) in July 2024, he faced a system in freefall: abysmal PISA scores, a legacy of financial scandals, and teachers crushed by bureaucracy. Armed with technocratic zeal, he vowed to right the ship. Yet, just 10 months later, his resignation amid President Marcos Jr.’s cabinet purge begs a gut-punch question: Can a visionary survive a system wired for political games rather than student futures?

Scandals and Stumbles: Navigating a Toxic Inheritance

Angara inherited a DepEd battered by crises. The Philippines’ 2022 PISA rankings—dead last in ASEAN for reading, math, and science—laid bare a learning catastrophe, with 18.9 million functionally illiterate graduates. The ghost of Vice President Sara Duterte’s tenure haunted him, marked by a P125-million confidential funds scandal and P1.3 billion in unremitted teacher benefits, as flagged by the Commission on Audit (COA). Angara pledged audits to clean up the mess, but progress was slow, tangled in bureaucratic red tape.

His handling of the Results-Based Performance Management System (RPMS) ignited both hope and fury. Teachers, drowning in paperwork, hailed his July 2024 suspension of RPMS under Executive Order No. 61. But the Alliance of Concerned Teachers (ACT) slammed inconsistent enforcement, with some schools still demanding compliance. Delays in overhauling RPMS exposed a grim truth: even a reformist’s bold strokes couldn’t outrun systemic inertia.

Bright Spots in the Gloom: Angara’s Technocratic Triumphs

Despite the chaos, Angara carved out victories. His RPMS suspension eased teacher workloads, earning praise from the DepEd National Employees’ Union, which called his leadership “exemplary.” A historic P10,000 Collective Negotiation Agreement (CNA) incentive payout lifted spirits. The MATATAG Curriculum, designed to streamline K-12 and align with labor needs via the Philippine Qualifications Framework, showcased his forward-thinking grit. His digital equity push—partnering with tech firms to bridge gaps—tackled PISA’s tech deficit, though P12 billion in 2025 budget cuts gutted his computerization plans.

Angara’s diplomatic finesse set him apart. Unlike Duterte’s divisiveness, he wooed stakeholders—teachers’ unions, private schools, and groups like the Philippine Business for Education. His Iloilo decentralization pilot, empowering local governments, hinted at a radical reimagining of DepEd—if only time hadn’t run out.

Political Shackles: A Cabinet Purge’s Casualty

Angara’s reforms were throttled by politics. Marcos’ 2025 cabinet reshuffle, sparked by a midterm election rout (only six of twelve Senate seats for Marcos’ coalition), demanded courtesy resignations to “recalibrate” Wikipedia: 2025 Philippine Cabinet Reshuffle. A P12 billion budget slash, including P10 billion from digital programs, kneecapped Angara’s tech agenda. The purge, sold as a governance reset, felt more like political theater, with a Manila Times editorial questioning if it was a “performative stunt.” Angara, despite no direct performance critiques, became collateral damage.

Angara vs. the Ghosts of DepEd Past

Clashing Titans: Angara vs. Sara Duterte

Angara’s collaborative ethos was a sharp rebuke to Duterte’s polarizing reign (2022–2024). Her red-tagging of teachers’ groups and confidential funds fiasco alienated educators and eroded trust. Angara’s audits and teacher-centric policies aimed to heal those wounds, though systemic scars like classroom shortages lingered. While Duterte pushed nationalist curricula with little impact, Angara’s MATATAG and digital initiatives leaned on data and stakeholder buy-in, offering a clearer path forward.

Echoes of History: Measuring Against Predecessors

Angara’s 10-month sprint contrasts with the marathons of Leonor Briones (2016–2022) and Armin Luistro (2010–2016). Briones battled underfunding but left classroom shortages unresolved. Luistro’s K-12 rollout, while ambitious, stumbled on poor execution, leaving Angara to untangle its mess. Both ignored DepEd Order 45 on literacy enforcement; Angara’s push to revive it, though incomplete, showed resolve where others faltered.

The Plea to Stay: Why Angara Matters

Rallying Cry: Stakeholders Demand Continuity

Teachers’ unions like ACT and the Teachers’ Dignity Coalition begged Marcos to keep Angara, citing his responsiveness PNA: Teachers’ Groups Support Angara. Business heavyweights like the Makati Business Club and education advocates like CEAP echoed the call, praising his legislative chops and vision. His August 2024 Commission on Appointments confirmation, unopposed, proved his bipartisan clout. Even post-resignation, Angara ensured 2025 school openings and Palarong Pambansa ran smoothly, a testament to his duty.

Unfinished Revolution: Reforms on the Brink

Angara’s MATATAG Curriculum and decentralization pilots are fragile sparks needing time to ignite. The PQF’s job-market alignment and digital upskilling could transform education, but only with steady leadership. His exit risks stalling these, especially under Marcos’ political chess game. As one teacher vented on X, “Angara was fixing the mess—why cut him now?” X: @justinmaniluh.

Battle Plan: Saving Angara’s Vision

Marcos’ Move: Reappoint and Unleash

Marcos must reappoint Angara to signal education trumps politics. His expertise and stakeholder trust are irreplaceable. Restoring the P12 billion budget cut and granting DepEd fiscal autonomy would empower Angara to deliver. A stable DepEd could anchor Marcos’ legacy, avoiding the chaos of an untested successor.

Angara’s Charge: Fight Graft, Surge Tech

If reinstated, Angara must wield COA reports to publicly expose Duterte-era corruption, rebuilding public trust. Accelerating digital infrastructure via private-sector deals can offset budget losses. Enforcing DepEd Order 45 with iron resolve—ensuring no child advances without reading skills—is non-negotiable.

The Verdict: A System’s Betrayal?

Sonny Angara’s tenure was a defiant stand against a crumbling system. His teacher-first reforms, digital dreams, and collaborative spirit offered hope for DepEd’s 28 million learners. Yet, political tides—budget slashes, a cabinet purge—threatened to sink his efforts. The question burns: Will Marcos sacrifice a reformist to appease allies, or salvage Angara’s course for a generation’s future? The answer will shape not just Angara’s legacy, but the soul of Philippine education.