CHED chair assumes top post in CDO, Mindanao state universities

CAGAYAN DE ORO: Commission on Higher Education (CHED) Chair J. Prospero De Vera III will take over the chairmanship in the Board of Regents (BOR) of a public tertiary school here and other Mindanao state college and universities (SUCs) after one of its commissioners was dismissed from service. In a memorandum dated Jan. 9 and circulated online on Tuesday, De Vera said he will personally sit as BOR chair of the University of Science and Technology of Southern Philippines and five other SUCs. The takeover is the result of the dismissal of Jo Mark Libre, the former commissioner who was removed from the ranks of CHED after an order from the Office of the Ombudsman about nepotism and grave misconduct charges. Libre was appointed CHED commissioner in February 2022. He became chair-designate in 24 BORs in different SUCs, mostly in Mindanao. As a result of Libre's dismissal, De Vera and three other commissioners divided the chairmanship of the 24 SUCs. Civil Service Commission (CSC) Chairperson Karlo Nograles al so dismissed Libre last year for malpractices. The CSC decision stemmed from Libre's stint as an official of Davao del Norte State College, where he allegedly manipulated plane ticket prices for his and a colleague's international travel in 2016. The CSC upheld its 2019 decision but excluded falsification of official documents as it was already included in the serious dishonesty offense. Source: Philippines News Agency