UP President Angelo Jimenez is in hot water anew after extending the selection process of the next UP Baguio (UPB) chancellor. Yesterday, the selection committee announced that an administrative order from Jimenez directed them to accept more nominations for the position after only one name came up in the final roster.
Incumbent UPB Chancellor Corazon Abansi was initially in the running for a second term. But eleven days after their vision paper presentation, she withdrew, citing her family’s advice. UPB math professor Wilfredo Alangui is the lone nominee.
Without anyone going against Alangui, he is set to become chancellor. But President Jimenez, through a directive, said that this is not the “consistently expressed preference of the Board of Regents (BOR)” for high-ranking university officials.
He also clarified that Alangui is still a nominee, but will have to face another nominee.
But Student Regent Iya Trinidad and Staff Regent Maria Theresa Alambra—who both hailed from UPB—said Jimenez’s pronouncements were not discussed with the entire BOR.
In a letter dated yesterday, the sectoral regents blasted Jimenez for not consulting the other members of the board, despite him saying that the rationale for the decision was the BOR’s preference. Faculty Regent Carl Marc Ramota expressed the same sentiment earlier today.
“We understand the value of having more than one nominee for highest positions in the University, but with UP’s tradition of democratic consultation, we would have preferred being consulted about this matter and having read the Search Committee report before a decision was made to extend the search,” the regents’ letter to Jimenez read.
But beyond lack of consultation, lone nominations for chancellor posts have been an acceptable practice in recent selections.
Under Jimenez’s term, the BOR granted Jose Camacho Jr. a second term as UP Los Baños chancellor in October 2023. This was also the case in 2020 when former UP Manila Chancellor Carmencita Padilla ran for her third term in office.
Jimenez, however, previously expressed hesitancy over reforming the chancellorship selection process, arguing that executive sessions are the BOR’s norm in these high-ranking appointments. The UP president’s pronouncements came in May last year, following the fallout of the botched Diliman chancellor selection in April 2023.
For the UPB University Student Council (USC), this decision chips at their confidence in Jimenez in implementing democratic governance in UP.
The sectoral regents have already demanded a copy of the search committee’s report and their appearance at the next BOR meeting on Thursday.
Jimenez directed the panel to “conduct a wide-ranging, active search for qualified nominees, including from other constituent units of the University and/or from outside the University as well.”
The search committee is now headed by UP Diliman Virata School of Business Dean Maria Regina Lucia Lizares, as the former chair, UPB Vice Chancellor for Academic Affairs Rosemary Gutierrez, is set to retire next month.
They are set to submit a new search report on May 10.
“The lack of transparency and democracy within the BOR is evident in the decision to extend the search process, which merits questioning and accountability,” the UPB USC wrote. “UP Baguio deserves a fair and inclusive selection process for its next Chancellor, who, for the next three years, will shape the progress of UPB as a community and an academic institution.” ●
