Ople calls for balanced approach

Secretary Blas Ople, head of the Department of Foreign Affairs (DFA), called for a balanced approach to the government's language policy that stresses the use of English as medium of instruction in schools, as he said both English and Filipino literacy should be improved in the educational system.

Ople asserted that the pursuit of a national language, which is Filipino, remains as one of the fundamental goals of the state, as stated in the Constitution.

"I warn educators who turn their back on the national language that they are reneging on one of the basic mandates of the Constitution to consolidate national unity and deepen national cohesion over the forces of fragmentation in our national life," Ople said.

Ople's statement contradicts that made by President Gloria Arroyo last week in which sheordered educators to revert to the use of English as the medium of instruction in Philippine schools to improve competency of Filipinos in what is now considered as the "language of business".

As a legislator and former Senate President, Ople had allocated portions of his countrywide development fund to the building of national language centres in various regions of the country.

Arroyo, in announcing her government's policy encouraging the use of English, had pointed out that declining fluency in English could affect the competitiveness of workers for white collar local jobs and overseas employment.