DepEd urged to suspend graduation rites amid COVID-19 threat

DepEd urged to suspend graduation rites amid COVID-19 threat

The Department of Education (DepEd) should suspend the scheduled end of school year rites this month due to the coronavirus disease (COVID-19) outbreak as a precautionary measure against the spread of the virus, according to Senator Sherwin Gatchalian, chair of the Senate basic education committee, on Monday.

"I strongly urge the DepEd to suspend graduation in high school, moving up activities in junior high school. Next week puro daycare graduation na ,” said Gatchalian in an interview.

“Suspend na muna natin para maiwasan natin yung transmission and also maiwasan natin din yung pagbalik din ng iba na galing abroad. So we’re minimizing movement. In three days, buong bansa may graduation, ang daming mga movement niyan and we have to minimize that,” said Gatchalian.

The senator also said that an estimated three million senior high school students are expected to graduate this school year.

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"Alam naman natin pag graduation 'yung mga magulang from abroad bumabalik talaga for that graduation. We're minimizing movement," he added.