Negros Occidental Rep. Jose Francisco Benitez has the endorsement of his colleague in the House of Representatives, in the person of Rep. Emilio Bernardino Yulo, as the next secretary of the Department of Education.
The influential Philippine Business for Education (PBEd) also included the name of Benitez among the four nominees it recommended for President Ferdinand Marcos Jr. to be his next Education secretary.
“Cong Kiko is highly qualified because apart from his legislative experience, he was part of the education sector prior to becoming congressman, as the president of the Philippine Women’s University. These experiences will bode well in managing the education department especially as he now has a grasp of the grassroots that can guide him how to better improve our education sector,” Yulo said.
Before he became a lawmaker in 2019, Yulo said Benitez served as president of Philippine Women’s University, and held teaching positions at the University of Washington – Seattle.
Benitez, he added, is a member of the Second Congressional Commission on Education.
Prior of joining politics, the 3rd district Negros Occidental solon had an academic background, including a Ph.D. in Comparative Literature from the University of Wisconsin-Madison and a summa cum laude B.A. from Cornell University.
“These experiences will bode well in managing the education department especially as he now has a grasp of the grassroots that can guide him how to better improve our education sector,” Yulo said
If he gets the appointment, Yulo said that Benitez will have to resign from his post as member of the House of Representatives, and he will be replaced by a caretaker, which will be appointed by Speaker Martin Romualdez.
In the previous months, Benitez had announced that he will seek reelection for his final term as representative of the Negros Occidental 3rd district. (Gilbert Bayoran via The Visayan Daily Star)