Cagayan Gov. Manuel Mamba slammed the 'diploma mill' allegations against universities in his province.
"Dapat tanungin muna nila, i-prove muna nila bago sila magpalabas ng ganyan," Mamba said on Monday, April 22, during DZRH's Magandang Umaga Pilipinas.
"Ito ay propagandista ng kung sinu-sino," the governor stressed.
Mamba decried the allegations as 'unfair' for the colleges and the Commission of Higher Education (CHED).
"Huwag niyo naman sirain ang aming mga institution dito. These are very old institutions na talagang nag-cultivate ng quality education dito sa amin and then sasabihin nila na diploma mill kami," the local chief remarked.
Lawmakers have called for an investigation on allegations that universities and colleges in Cagayan have been selling degrees to Chinese students.
The allegations came following concerns regarding the alleged influx of Chinese students in universities in the province amidst growing tensions between China and the Philippines in the West Philippine Sea.
Commission on Higher Education chairperson Prospero De Vera III mentioned that 'a significant number of Chinese students enrolled in Saint Paul University Philippines' in Tuguegarao City.
The Bureau of Immigration also said that Cagayan has around 1,500 Chinese students.
