Bill granting PUP polytechnic status vetoed

President Rodrigo Duterte returned to Congress on Wednesday the consolidated bill designating the Polytechnic University of the Philippines (PUP) as a national polytechnic university.

In his veto letter, the President said PUP is just one of many state universities and colleges (SUC) in the country.

“While I recognize the noble objective of the measure to promote, foster, nurture and protect the right of all citizens to accessible quality education, I have serious reservations on the suitability of the means chosen to attain this end, namely, granting the Polytechnic University of the Philippines (PUP) the status of a national polytechnic university, with all the benefits and privileges such status entails,” Duterte wrote.

The bill combines Senate Bill 2124 and House Bill 9023, or the Charter of the Polytechnic University of the Philippines.

The Chief Executive said the move should be seriously “reassessed” based on PUP’s ranking among other SUC.

Likewise, enacting the bill will affect the government’s budget.

“The proposed provision on appropriations would also have a significant fiscal impact on the government, which may be avoided only if the PUP budget would continue to be subject to the need for prioritization and the usual budgetary and monitoring processes,” he said in his veto letter.