Call it a Valentine surprise but an invitation dated February 14, 2023, from the Sangguniang Panlungsod of Davao has asked us to attend the Committee on Education, Science and Technology, Arts and Culture hearing chaired by Dr. Pilar C. Braga. Of interest in the invite is Item No, 537, a request from the heirs of Tomas M. Tionko to rename Davao City National High School to Tomas M. Tionko National High School .
Renaming public buildings and places in honor of persons who have contributed to the development of a community is established by Republic Act 10086 which strengthens “peo-ples’ nationalism through Philippine history” by changing the name of the National Histori-cal Institute to National Historical Commission of the Philippines , the guide-lines in renaming public places and edifices, both local and national, were revised, with the education department playing a collaborative role in case the...
Section 1, Part I, stipulated that “local government units cannot rename public place if the original name was created by an act of Congress or by a proclamation of the President of the Philippines.” In this case, the name DCNHS is an offshoot of RA 6655 or the Free Public Secondary Education Act of 1988, which classifies its change of name as “an act of Con-gress.” The use of “national” in the title is based on the intent to nationalize all public sec-ondary schools.