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PRESIDENTIAL DECREE NO. 687
PRESIDENTIAL DECREE NO. 687 -
FURTHER AMENDING THE TEXTBOOK LAW, ACT 2957 AS AMENDED, PROVIDING THE
GUIDELINES IN THE SELECTION, APPROVAL, PRICING AND DISTRIBUTION OF
SUITABLE TEXTBOOKS FOR USE IN PUBLIC ELEMENTARY AND SECONDARY SCHOOLS
AND FOR OTHER PURPOSES
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WHEREAS,
the Board of Textbooks performs the vital function of selection and
approval of textbooks for use in all public elementary and secondary
schools, including the approval of textbooks used in private elementary
and secondary schools;chanroblesvirtualawlibrary
WHEREAS, in order to perform this function effectively and properly, it
is necessary that the Board be composed of persons with the highest
competence, dedication and integrity, with authority to avail of such
technical assistance as may be necessary to insure proper evaluation of
manuscripts and the selection and adoption of quality textbooks for use
in the public schools; chanroblesvirtualawlibrary
WHEREAS, the objective of selection and production of quality textbooks
can be achieved by allowing open and free competition in the submission
of manuscripts by qualified writers and the production thereof by duly
registered bona fide publishers, encouraging at the same time the
production of textbooks by competent research staffs in
government-organized curriculum research and development centers;chanroblesvirtualawlibrary
WHEREAS, the assessment of production costs of any textbook adopted by
the Board for the purpose of determining prices at which textbooks can
be sold at the minimum cost requires the adoption of a scheme whereby a
fair and just appraisal thereof can best arrived at;chanroblesvirtualawlibrary
WHEREAS, a degree of control in the actual procurement and allocation
of textbooks needed in the field should be exercised by the Board to
insure the equitable distribution thereof based on needs;chanroblesvirtualawlibrary
NOW, THEREFORE, I, FERDINAND E. MARCOS, President of the Philippines,
by virtue of the powers vested in me by the Constitution, do hereby
order and decree to be part of the laws of the land, the following:cralaw:red
Section 1. The Board of Textbooks created under the
provision of Act 2957 as amended is hereby renamed the Textbook Board.
The Board shall be composed of seven (7) members as follows: A Chairman
and four (4) members appointed by the President upon recommendation of
the Secretary of Education and Culture, the Director of Elementary
Education and the Director of Secondary Education. The Chairman and the
other four (4) members appointed by the President, one of whom shall
represent the cultural minority, shall serve a term of three (3) years,
except that of the four first appointed, two (2) shall serve a term of
three (3) years and the other two (2) for a term of two (2) years. Any
vacancy in the Board shall be filled by the appointment by the
President but the person so appointed shall serve only for the
unexpired term. No person shall be appointed to the Board unless he is
a citizen of the Philippines, with at least a master's degree or its
equivalent in terms of professional experience, status and
achievements. chanroblesvirtualawlibrary
Section 2. The Textbook Board shall have a
Secretariat composed of personnel as are now provided under the
Integrated Reorganization Plan.
Section 3. The Board may avail itself, at any given
time, of such number of qualified personnel from the public or private
sector to perform the function of appraisal of manuscripts submitted
for evaluation and selection by authors or by duly registered book
publishers. They shall be entitled to such honorarium for their
services for such amount per title as may be determined by the Board.
Section 4. The Board shall determine and adopt its
own guidelines or rules and regulations for their operational
procedure. It shall adopt such policies as will insure a fair and
objective appraisal of manuscripts submitted to it for evaluation, the
criteria for the final selection and approval as textbooks and a policy
on continuing evaluation of those approved and adopted by the Board. It
shall likewise undertake studies from time to time on the textbook
situation in the country, seek ways and means for their production at
minimum cost, and adopt policy guidelines in the allocation and
distribution of textbooks in accordance with the procurement program of
the Department of Education and Culture. chanroblesvirtualawlibrary
Section 5. The policy of free enterprise on the
matter of allowing the submission of manuscripts by writers or duly
registered publishers for possible selection and adoption as textbooks
shall be without prejudice to the automatic adoption by the Board of
any treatise, textbook or manual on the same subject prepared by
agencies authorized by the government; Provided, however, that in the
case of the latter, the printing or production thereof shall be farmed
out to qualified textbook publishers or printers under such guidelines
as may be prescribed by the Board.
Section 6. The manuscript thus selected and approved
by the Board, in accordance with Sec. 5 hereof, shall be printed in
such number of copies and under such guidelines as the Board may
direct, such copies to be used for determining the reasonable price at
which the book shall be purchased by the government, provisions of
existing laws to the contrary notwithstanding. For this purpose, there
shall be created by the Secretary of Education and Culture, a Price
Committee consisting of three (3) members, one Board member
representing the Board as Chairman, one representing the Philippine
Educational Publishers Association and one representing the Bureau of
Printing. The Committee shall hold its meetings on the date set by the
Board which shall be in the nature of a public hearing, allowing expert
testimony therein in order to arrive at an acceptable estimate of
production cost for any given textbook. The determination of the
"mark-up" in percent over the production cost for any textbook to
insure a reasonable profit for publishers and at the same time insuring
the minimum procurement cost for the government shall be determined by
the Board. chanroblesvirtualawlibrary
Section 7. It shall be unlawful for the Board to
consider for adoption any treatise textbook or manuscript in whose
authorship, editorship or preparation a member of the Board may have
direct or indirect interest. It shall, likewise, be unlawful for any
member of the Board during the period of his incumbency to own directly
or indirectly any interest whatsoever in any firm, partnership or
corporation on publishing or dealing in school textbooks.
Section 8. Except in exceptional case as may be
determined by the Board, the textbooks selected and approved shall be
used for a period of at least six (6) years from the date of their
adoption. Private schools recognized or authorized by the Government
shall, as much as possible, use textbooks approved by the Board. The
Board shall have the power to prohibit the use of any textbook in
private schools other than those approved by the Board, which it may
find to be against the law or offensive to the dignity and honor of the
Government and people of the Philippines or which it may find to be
against the general policies of the government or which it may find as
pedagogically unsuitable.
Section 9. The Board shall, as a matter of policy
encourage the writing of textbooks for Philippine schools by Filipino
authors using such Philippine sources of subject material as will
develop in pupils and students a deeper sense of nationalism, respect
for Philippine institutions and appreciation of our cultural heritage.
Section 10. For administrative purposes, the Textbook
Board shall be directly under the Office of the Secretary of Education
and Culture. The Chairman of the Board shall have authority, with the
approval of the Department Head, to obtain the technical assistance of
such personnel from any department, bureau or office of the government
which may be considered necessary for the proper performance of its
duties, with compensation for their services as may be determined by
the Board.
Section 11. Members of the Board shall be entitled to
an allowance of One Hundred (P100.00) Pesos per meeting actually
attended but not exceeding Four Hundred (P400.00) Pesos a month,
exclusive or reimbursement of actual and necessary expenses incurred in
attendance of meetings and other official business authorized by
resolution of the Board.
Section 12. The sum of One Hundred Thousand
(P100,000.00) Pesos or so much thereof as may be necessary shall, in
addition to the regular annual appropriations for the operation and
maintenance of the Textbook Board, be appropriated annually from funds
of the National Treasury not otherwise appropriated to carry out the
provisions of this Decree.
Section 13. All laws, decrees, executive orders or
existing rules and regulations contrary to or inconsistent with the
provisions of this Decree are hereby repealed, amended or modified
accordingly.
Section 14. The Decree shall take effect immediately.
Done in the City of Manila,
this 22nd day of April, in the year of Our Lord, nineteen hundred and
seventy-five.
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