Antique principal removed over viral toga ban incident — Malacañang

Metro Manila, Philippines - The high school principal in Antique who ordered students to remove their graduation togas has been removed from her position, Malacañang announced Friday.

“Dahil na rin po sa naging direktiba po ng Pangulo, agaran pong kumilos ang ating Secretary, DepEd Secretary Sonny Angara, at ang sinasabi pong guro ay tinanggal na po bilang principal sa nasabing eskuwelahan,” Palace Press Officer Claire Castro said during a Palace briefing.

[Translation: Following the directive of the President, Education Secretary Sonny Angara acted swiftly, and the teacher in question was removed as principal of the school.]

A viral video showed the principal halting a graduation ceremony to make students remove their togas, allegedly citing DepEd’s simplicity and “no collection” policies. A teacher confronted her onstage, triggering shouts from students.

DepEd earlier said that there is no rule against wearing togas during graduation.

“The toga or sablay may be worn as an optional supplementary garment,” DepEd said, citing Memorandum No. 27, s. 2025, and Order No. 009, s. 2023.

Castro also clarified that while the principal was removed from her post, her teaching license remains valid.

“Tinanggal lamang po siya sa pagiging principal. Iyong license naman po niya ay hindi naman manggagaling sa pag-uutos ng Pangulo o ng DepEd Secretary,” she explained.

[Translation: She was only removed as principal. Her teaching license doesn’t fall under the authority of the President or the DepEd Secretary.]

Under the law, the authority to revoke or suspend a teacher’s license lies with the Professional Regulation Commission (PRC).

The Department of Education’s Schools Division in Antique has initiated an investigation and ordered concerned school officials to submit an incident report and an appropriate intervention plan.