A moment of silence for Thomasian unity.
The highly questionable health permit ordinance of the Manila city government has undoubtedly strained relationships, disrupted work plans and sowed painful divisions in the University.
When our administrators issued the memorandum requiring employees to comply with the policy last April, some workers found themselves wondering why they were being made to follow an ordinance that reeks of extortion during the eve of an election year.
And they cannot be blamed for having such thoughts.
Imagine having to pay P625 every year for a sanitation permit that can only be obtained from the city health department led by the mayor’s husband, queuing in an overcrowded “public health” laboratory, producing urine and stool samples in a grossly unhygienic facility and then enduring the process all over again next year.
It was a lot worse for a number of part-time faculty members. Some of them were forced to undergo the process just to be able to teach three or six units, a hassle-filled, demeaning experience they do not have to endure in their full-time jobs.
But the opposition to the health permit policy being enforced by the city government is not just about substandard facilities or inconvenience.
Critics of the policy pointed out that the ordinance, which was approved in 2021, is full of loopholes, making them wonder why UST is just imposing it on its workers without questions. The ordinance is so wide-reaching, even ambulant vendors – yes, the ones selling fishballs, kwek kwek, taho, hair clips, cellphone cases and the like – are not spared from the requirement. It also does not care about nuances. Educators are treated as if they are engaged in activities that might infect, poison or contaminate students.
Others find the policy discriminatory because practicing professionals may skip the unpalatable process of getting a health permit if they pay a professional tax receipt. The sudden eagerness of the city government to impose the ordinance, which was not implemented for more than two years, also fuelled speculations that there is a hidden agenda behind it.
Critical thinking was dealt a huge blow when UST issued a statement this month ensuring “the implementation of relevant measures to achieve timely compliance alongside ongoing dialogues with our stakeholders.” “True to her tradition of excellence and integrity the University of Santo Tomas is committed to meet the requirements of the laws and policies of regulatory agencies, including ordinances from the Manila City government,” the two-sentence statement read.
We find it confusing, even disturbing that the statement linked UST’s “tradition of excellence and integrity” with compliance with the Manila city ordinance when our patron himself, St. Thomas Aquinas, was critical of unjust laws.
In his magnum opus Summa Theologiae, Aquinas described an unjust law as “contrary to human good… as when an authority imposes on his (or her) subjects burdensome laws, conducive not to the common good but rather to his (or her) own cupidity or vainglory…or in respect of the form, as when burdens are imposed unequally on the community, although with a view of the common good.”
But our administrators cannot really be blamed if they seek to please Manila Mayor, Thomasian pride and public servant extraordinaire Honey Lacuna. She can punish them for non-compliance; Aquinas can’t. Perhaps it’s a case of practicality triumphing over philosophy. We just hope it was not a case of docility.
Unfortunately for UST administrators who bowed to the city government, they ended up being Lacuna’s scapegoat in this mess.
In a media forum held this week, the mayor blamed the UST administration for the criticisms against the requirement, saying it had failed to explain the policy to its workers properly. Lacuna, who is seeking reelection next year, wants us to believe that it was just a case of “miscommunication,” not a haphazard, defective and crooked ordinance whose implementation is mired with discrepancies.
Some employees grudgingly complied with the requirement while others refused to do so out of principle. Non-tenured faculty members who did not secure a health permit were not issued appointment papers and were barred from teaching this term.
As a result, we have opponents of the ordinance arguing with those who support UST’s decision to implement it; we have faculty members clashing with their superiors over teaching assignments; we have employees accusing our administrators of being cowards and who feel that the University has ditched them to appease Lacuna; we have workers who claim that the labor unions have not done enough to protect the welfare of their members; we have Thomasians who are criticizing the University for tolerating the burdensome and problematic requirement imposed by the local government.
While the blame game goes on, some class schedules remain in disarray and outsiders are passing judgment on our capability to handle issues like this one. And one extremely lucky, powerful party is raking in huge sums of money at our expense.
It’s about time that we acknowledged the root of the problem that has driven a huge wedge between the UST officials and the workers. The cause of all these disputes and disruptions is an exploitative and unjust policy approved on the pretext of promoting public health.
The real enemy is neither the employee critical of the administration nor the academic official who takes orders from the higher-ups. We know the name of the real enemy and it is called Ordinance 8793 or the Sanitation and Disinfection Code of the City of Manila.
We have to show all the sectors affected by this immoral policy that our solidarity goes beyond holding the annual Paskuhan festivities, gushing over Thomasian achievers, forming the biggest human rosary or chanting “Go Uste” during UAAP games.
Unity matters more in times of adversity. Let us revive the Thomasian unity slain by this external interference. Let us work together to end this plague that is threatening to affect the quality of our education, disrupt our operations and tarnish our reputation. One messed up term is one too many.
Pushing for deadline extensions or seeking concessions with the city government will not work. These actions will not eradicate the evil that has penetrated our vulnerable institution, which has produced a number of heroes who courageously took risks and endured sacrifices to resist tyranny.
Let us push for the common good by seeking the revocation or invalidation of the Manila health permit ordinance. Our University has a respected law school and has a number of seasoned legal practitioners in its faculty roster. We are more than sure that with the help of UST labor unions and alumni, our legal experts can build a strong case against this revolting and ill-conceived policy. The junking of the ordinance will benefit not just the Thomasian community, but also the other sectors in the capital city that are being targeted by this money-making scheme.
We hope our administrators will support efforts to challenge the legality of the health permit ordinance. This will dispel the grossly unfair notion that they are lapdogs of the city government who do not care about their subordinates.
Unless a legal action against the city government will open a can of worms – something we are sure will not happen since UST has established a tradition of excellence and integrity – we cannot think of any backlash that may befall the University should it decide to exercise its right to question the ordinance before the court.
We therefore urge the UST administrators to defend their workers, promote the interests of their students, rally support against an abusive policy, be role models for other schools opposed to the ordinance and fight for the common good.
Thomasians should join hands in turning this unjust policy into an election issue and in unleashing the power the University wields.
Given our diverse capabilities, our long history of pushing back against repressive systems and the University’s reputation as a competent, committed and compassionate institution, we dare say that we are more powerful than we know.
The real enemy should unite rather than divide us. F
