Republic of the Philippines
HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES
Quezon City

| NINETEENTH CONGRESS
First Regular Session

1724

HOUSE BILL NO.

| Introduced by: REP. RUTH MARIANO-HERNANDEZ

AN ACT
IDATING THE COMPULSORY TEACHING OF ETHICS SUBJECTS IN
PHILIPPINE TERTIARY EDUCATION

EXPLANATORY NOTE

This measure aims to mandate the compulsory teaching of ethics as a general education
subject in Philippine tertiary education with the long-term view of mitigating and
eventually eradicating the long-term scourge of corruption in the country.

In the 2018 Corruption Perceptions Index (CPI) conducted by the global anti-corruption
watchdog Transparency International, the Philippines obtained a score of 36 in 2018 -
up from 34 in 2017 - thereby jumping from 111th to 99th out of 180 countries.

The CPI ranks 180 countries and territories by their perceived levels of public sector
corruption, according to experts and business people. It uses a scale of zero to 100,
where zerg is “highly corrupt” and 100 is “very clean.”

While the Philippines’ ranking has generally improved, there is a need to institute a
cross-generational policy to continually educate the citizenry on the ways and means to
address and combat the said scourge. In fact, our country's score, according to
Transparency International, is still far from the Asia-Pacific regional average of 44.

It is hoped that the inclusion of mandatory ethics subjects in the general education
curriculum of colleges, universities, and technical and vocational education institutions
shall result in a more morally enlightened, assertive and accountable citizenry in the
public and private sectors of our national life.



| Republic of the Philippines
HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES
Quezon City

NINETEENTH CONGRESS
| First Regular Session

| 1724

HOUSE BILL NO.

] Introduced by: REP. RUTH MARIANO-HERNANDEZ

AN ACT
MANDATING THE COMPULSORY TEACHING OF ETHICS SUBJECTS IN
PHILIPPINE TERTIARY EDUCATION

Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representatives of the Philippines in Congress
assembled:

SECTION 1. Short Title. - This Act shall be known as the “Ethics and Accountability
Education Act”.

SECTION 2. Declaration of Policy. - It is hereby declared the policy of the State to
promote the sustained and all-round development of Filipinos in all fields and
professions, including the inculcation and strengthening of ethics and accountability,
through education. Towards this end, the State shall establish, maintain, and
continuously update and innovate a permanent curriculum on Ethics and Accountability

in the tertiary education of Filipinos.

|
SECTION 3. Definition of Terms. - As used in this Act, the following terms are referred
to as follows:

(A) Ethics - involves the systematization, defense, and recommendation of concepts
of right and wrong conduct. It seeks to resolve questions of human morality by
defining concepts such as good and evil, right and wrong, virtue and vice, justice
and crime in all fields of endeavor in government and the private sector;

(B) Accountability - is the obligation to accept responsibility or to account for one's
decisions and actions. This includes the obligation of an individual, institution or
organization to account for its activities, accept responsibility for them, and to
pair the results in a transparent manner. It is the answerability, liability, and

fe expectation of account-giving in the public, non-government and private

sectors.

(©) CHED - Commission on Higher Education;


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(D) TESDA - Technical Education and Skills Development Authority;

(E) Tertiary Education - refers to any post-secondary education course, be ita
technical, vocational or degree program.

SECTION 4, Compulsory Teaching of Ethics Subjects. - The offering of general ethics
subjects as part of the general education curriculum is hereby declared mandatory for
all tertiary education courses in all higher educational institutions (HEIs) and technical
and vocational education institutions. The general ethics subject is apart from the
professional specialization ethics subjects that are required in specific courses (i.
ethics, medical ethics, journalism ethics, etc.).

egal

SECTION 5, Implementing Agencies. - The CHED and the TESDA are hereby authorized
and directed to formulate and adopt a system for the effective implementation of this
Act.

The said system shall include the following:

(a) The|study and standardization of all current offerings of higher educational
institutions and vocational education institutions on general ethics courses;

(b) Research on current educational efforts on teaching ethics in foreign countries
with the end view of applying relevant practices to our education system;

(c) Maximize the expertise and participation of the Office of the Ombudsman in the
conduct of fora and symposia in higher educational institutions and technical
and vocational education institutions on ethics and accountability;

(4) Extend support to the activities of university-based youth groups that promote
ethics and accountability in the various universities in the country; and,

(2) a such other powers as may be necessary to carry out the purposes of this
Act

SECTION 6. Appropriations. - The amount necessary for the implementation of this Act
shall be charged to the budgets allocated to the CHED and the TESDA, and other
relevant government agencies and institutions under the General Appropriations Act.

SECTION 7. Implementing Rules and Regulations. - The Chairperson of the CHED and
the Director General of the TESDA shall promulgate the rules and regulations necessary
for the proper implementation thereof within ninety (90) days from the effectivity of
this Act.

SECTION 8. Separability Clause. - If any provision of this Act is held invalid or
unconstitutional, other provisions not affected shall continue to be in full force and
effect.



SECTION 9. Repealing Clause. - All laws, decrees, executive orders or parts thereof

inconsistent with the provisions of this Act are hereby repealed, amended or modified

accordingly,

SECTION 10. Effectivity. - This Act shall take effect fifteen (15) days after its complete
in the Official Gazette or a in national newspaper of general circulation.

publication

Approved,