Commission on Higher Education (CHED) employees have reportedly filed administrative and ethics complaints against Chairperson Shirley C. Agrupis, accusing her of abusing her authority and cultivating what they describe as a climate of fear inside the agency.
Central to the employees’ concerns is Agrupis’ reported insistence that she enjoys a close relationship with First Lady Liza A. Marcos. According to employees, Agrupis has invoked this claimed closeness in a manner that has created the impression that she is politically protected — even untouchable — despite the complaints and mounting criticism surrounding her leadership. Employees stress, however, that the supposed relationship is based on Agrupis’ own claims, and questions remain over whether the First Lady herself is even aware that her name is allegedly being invoked in this way. The claim has cast a long shadow over the complaints, fueling worry that the allegations against Agrupis will be quietly shelved and that she may still secure reappointment.
Employees have also raised questions about how CHED resources have been used for official activities. They point to one conference in particular, where a biographical presentation reportedly celebrating Agrupis’ life and career was screened. They argue that the devotion of government funds and staff time for the activity should have gone toward programs tied directly to the commission’s educational mandate.
A separate complaint concerns educational materials that were once slated for nationwide release. Employees allege that distribution of these publications was halted, leaving thousands of copies sitting unused in CHED warehouses despite the public money already spent producing them. Some employees claim the holdup traces back to the Chairperson’s reluctance to promote materials she had no personal involvement in creating.
Critics inside the agency also point to what they call inconsistent fiscal priorities. Agrupis has publicly championed austerity, they note, and numerous plantilla positions remain unfilled. Employees say that the vacancy rate has left the agency understaffed and strained. Yet, they argue, spending has continued on activities they view as non-essential. The result, employees claim, is a commission where image-building has been prioritized over the personnel needed to keep core operations running.
For many employees, the dispute has grown beyond any single decision or management style. They say CHED’s energy should instead be channeled into strengthening higher education policy, supporting state universities and colleges, and confronting the larger challenges facing Philippine higher education.
The employees say they are now appealing directly to the First Lady, hoping she will push for an impartial review of their complaints. They insist the appeal isn’t driven by personal grievance, but by a desire to restore public trust in CHED, and to ensure government resources serve students, educators, and higher education institutions, not internal politics or its head’s tendency for self-aggrandizement.
