Lanao Sur guv to sue DepEd official over 'lies' in Roxas visit

COTABATO CITY — Governor Mamintal Adiong Jr. of Lanao del Sur said he was contemplating on filing charges against a division schools superintendent, who accused him of compelling teachers to attend a gathering for the visit of Liberal Party standard bearer Mar Roxas in Marawi City on Tuesday.Adiong said he never made such an unlawful threat to any DepEd (Department of Education) official,” adding that even provincial employees remained in their work stations when Roxas met officials of the Federation of the Royal Sultanates of Lanao at the provincial gymnasium, right next to the governor’s office building. That's a complete lie, Adiong said.The federation of Lanao sultanates, Adiong said, has conferred on Roxas the royal title of a datu,” because they believe he can continue the development efforts President Aquino has given our province.”Mona Macatanong, division schools superintendent, told reporters that with Adiong compelling teachers to meet Roxas at the provincial gymnasium, more or less, we had more than 10 big schools that were closed (on Tuesday).”Adiong did not say what specific charges he would file against Macatanong. But he said Macatanong was supposed to have ended her tenure of office as of 2014 on compulsory retirement. But the latter had secured a regional court order affirming a supposed clerical error on her birth certificate, showing a much older age of hers.The governor said if he had power of supervision of DepEd, he would have prioritized putting the division in order, since the Court of Appeals has reversed last month the lower court’s decision, effectively upholding Macatanong’s retirement from office.But Adiong said he had no such power over teachers, particularly as to order them to abandon classes under threat of salary deduction. How ridiculous would that be when I do not even sign payrolls of teachers?” he said.