Monday, October 16, 2006

A Solomonic Decision?

The Court of Appeals has issued a decision ordering the retake of only 1,687 Nursing Licensure Exam takers out of the 17,322 total board passers (read more here). The CA ruled that 1, 687 examinees would retake tests 3 and 5, which the PRC, by virtue of Resolution 31, invalidated due to reports that questions in those tests had been leaked. Everyone seems to agree that it was a Solomonic decision; even Labor Secretary Arturo Brion said that he will abide by and will no longer call for a retake of NLE passers. I also agree. Let's just cross our fingers and observe whether CGFNS will see it that way also.

If everyone (especially Brion and Dante Ang) just waited for the NBI findings to come out before shooting off their mouths, then things would have been better all around. Let this be a lesson to all public officials: do not issue statements to the media if you have only incomplete information or partial picture of the problem. I think Secretary Brion wanted to make an impression to the public ("naga-pasikat"), hence his rather "rash" pronouncement. Now the public's first impression of him is as the new Cabinet Secretary who ate his own words. It's a pity that he will make his public debut (I was not even aware that he is the Labor Secretary) in the public consciousness this way. It is ironic that Brion, who was a Court of Appeals justice before being appointed to the Labor portfolio, was "contradicted" by his former colleagues at the CA.

Hard-hitting journalist Stella Arnaldo has unearthed a old Manila Times article about Petron Chair Nicasio Alcantara regarding a land dispute controversy in Mindanao that his family was involved in. Authorities say that they will be siphoning the Petron oil spill early next year at the earliest. Well, that is, if there is still oil left in the cargo hold of MT Solar I. Reports say oil continues to leak from the ill-fated ship and the way things are going, there might not be oil left for IOPC to siphon. Also, Guimarasnons deny Petron's claim that their island province is already "safe" and "clean." Nice try, Petron PR guys -- close but no cigar...

3 comments:

vic said...

Is it possible to have professionals regulated by their respective professsions itself? Like we have here in the Province of Ontario, where Nursing Profession, is regulated by the College of Nurses, a professional body run by the nurses themselves, who regulate the nursing profession as to its educational qualifications, training, discipline and code of ethics and for conducting licensure exams and Registration. No other body or agency like the muddle that is happening over there. All issues must be taken care by the College, of course unless it is a criminal, which always the responsibilities of the courts. It is true to all other professions. Just curious if it is possible. May minimize or eliminate these shenanigans, or maybe it's not the structure at all.

Oliver M. Mendoza said...

Yeah. I think the members of the Board of Nursing (BON) of the PRC are recommended by the Philippine Nursing Association (PNA). George Cordero, who is being linked to the leakage, was the former president of PNA until he resigned because of the leakage controversy.

vic said...

PNA is an Association of Practicing Nurses, a labor union for the purpose of collectively bargaining for the benefits of the working nurses, as differentiate from a College which is a Regulatory Body. Actually the two are protagonists, since the Nurses Union is under the authority of the College. But the two bodies have to have a regular consultations and meetings to improve the quality of the profession and agree on the rules and Ethics. The only time time the two may have a confrontation is during a discipline process in which the Nurses Association will have to defend its member against the conplaints which is resolved by the College discipline committee. Instead of Malacanang, court of Appeals, Labour dept., and PRC getting into the circus, all is handled only by one body..