January 16, 2011 update: The current DepEd secretary is Bro. Armin A. Luistro, FSC. He was appointed by President Noynoy Aquino in June 2010.

Edilberto de Jesus is the new Department of Education secretary. The Palace formally announced his appointment this afternoon. An experienced educator and not a politician, he is president of the Far Eastern University and member of the board of the Ateneo de Manila University. He also served as peace process adviser during the Aquino administration.

De Jesus takes over the position vacated by former Senator Raul Roco. Unlike Foreign Affairs secretary Blas Ople, the new DepEd secretary appears acceptable to various sectors, including the student movement. National Union of Students of the Philippines president and Tinig.com columnist Mong Palatino said while they clash with de Jesus on the tuition increase issue, the new secretary is their ally in the anti-ROTC issue.

Incidentally, de Jesus is the husband of my former boss, Center for Media Freedom and Responsibility executive director Melinda Quintos de Jesus.


Ederic Eder

Ederic is a Filipino communications worker in the telecom, media, and technology industry. He writes about K-dramas and Korean celebrities for Hallyudorama.

He used to be a social media manager for news at GMA Network, where he also headed YouScoop, GMA News and Public Affairs’ citizen journalism arm.

He was with Yahoo! Philippines for more than three years before returning to GMA Network, where he was also previously part of the News Research section.

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