DAVAO CITY, Philippines – Around 300 students and faculty members of the Cotabato Foundation College of Science and Technology (CFCST) walked out of their classes on Tuesday morning and marched to push for the removal of school president Dr. Samson Molao.
The protesters marched to Barangay. Doruluman in Arakan, North Cotabato.
In a phone interview with Davao Today, Aiza Sumalia, spokesperson of the Save CFCST Movement, said they wanted to disprove Molao for saying there no legitimate movement in the campus that called for his ouster.
“He said he will not resign unless majority of the students would stand and protest in front of the administration building. That’s why we conducted a demonstration to let him know that our teachers were not alone in calling for his resignation. There are many of us calling for his ouster,” Sumalian said.
Sumalian belied Molao’s claimed that there were only one or two teachers behind the calls for his resignation.
The Save CFCST Movement is an alliance of teachers, students, and employees calling for the resignation of Molao.
Sumalian, however, said that there were others who shared the same sentiments, but opted not to show it off in public due to fear of reprisal.
The protesting faculty and students criticized Molao for allegations of corruption, frustrated murder, and mismanagement.
Read: Calls for ouster mount vs. school prexy accused of attempted killing, corruption
Calls for Molao’s ouster started to peak on Dec. 5, when at least 500 farmers set up a protest camp inside the school’s premises to demand use of the 700 hectares out of the total 1,000 hectare land reservation of the school.
Cecilio Carmelo, chairperson of the MAILUMINADO Farmers Association Inc., said that in its 59 years of existence, CFCST was only able to develop 300 hectares of the land reservation.
Farmers who have been tilling the reservation land since the 1950s deserve to be awarded of the remaining 700 hectares.
CFCST’s 1,000 hectare land reservation, along with University of Southern Mindanao’s 4,091 hectares, encompass the land area of five villages (barangay) in Arakan including. Doruluman, Makalangot, Malibatuan, Ilustre, and Naje now collectively known as MAILUMINADO.
Read: Farmers demand ownership to unused school property lot
Carmelo said the farmers will not leave the camp until a “positive solution” has been given to their demands. (davaotoday.com)
