The Commission on Higher Education (CHED) and Maritime Industry Authority (Marina) will firmly implement President Ferdinand R. Marcos' policy directive on ensuring full compliance by Philippine maritime schools with the training and certification standards of the European Commission.

(Photo courtesy of Marina)

CHED Chairperson Prospero De Vera said they have committed to the President that they will make all non-compliant maritime institutions in the country compliant "as fast as we can."

On Tuesday, President Ferdinand "Bongbong" Marcos Jr. ordered maritime and education agencies to ensure compliance with training, education and certification standards of the European Union in order to ensure the global  recognition of Filipino seafarers' certificates even after the recognition lapses in 10 years.

De Vera said it is not true that all maritime schools in the country are compliant with maritime education standards. He debunked claims that its goal to make all non-compliant maritime schools compliant with existing seafaring standards is only to milk money out of them.

It is also not true that government agencies are committing fraud through ordering non-compliant institutions to comply with necessary requirements, he said.

"Well, that is not completely true because we closed down 15 maritime programs already," De Vera stressed in a Palace press briefing on Tuesday, April 11.

He pointed out that if these schools are really compliant to existing maritime education standards, the government would not be closing down 15 programs in the first place.

"If it’s true that everyone is compliant with standards then we should not have been able to close 15 maritime programs," De Vera said.

"We’re very strict, the technical panel and our technical evaluators have gone through the programs and we have closed 15 (maritime programs) over the past year and a half. So, there are programs that are non-compliant," he added.

The CHED chairperson said they are still waiting for the evaluation to be completed before disclosing institutions that are non-compliant.

He said CHED, Department of Transportation (DOTr), and Marina will have to "go through the schools again and we will find out whether all the schools are compliant."