Following Department of Education (DepEd) Secretary Jesli Lapus’ appeal to politicians not to use graduation ceremonies as venues for their campaign, former Pamantasan ng Lungsod ng Maynila (PLM) president and now Nacionalista Party senatorial candidate Atty. Adel Tamano has expressed his disgust over Lapus’ “inconsistent remark.”

“That’s rich coming from Sec. Lapus who has his face in posters for DepEd in schools all over the Philippines,” Tamano blasted, adding that the DepEd has long “politicized” schools.

“Sec. Lapus must check first if his own department has kept schools free from politics long before the campaign period. Exactly how many large billboards do we see with his and his president’s face on them? You tell me,” the young lawyer mocked.

Tamano, who is running under the banner of the Nacionalista Party, is also known as the first ever Filipino commencement speaker in Harvard Law School and the first ever Filipino-Muslim scholar-graduate of the same Ivy League school.

“As someone who has spoken in numerous graduation ceremonies, definitely the focus should be on the students, to inspire them to face their new life as graduates. I do agree with Sec. Lapus that to overtly campaign would be in poor taste and unjust to the students. However, political leaders may provide inspiration and guidance to the young by being graduation speakers as long as their message is one of genuine inspiration and not the usual partisan politics. It’s really a matter of discretion and delicadeza,” Tamano stressed.

The senatorial bet also said that he was hoping the administration bets will heed Lapus’ call.

“It would be an insult if the administration bets themselves will be the first to ignore their Education secretary’s plea. Anyway, the Filipino youth are wise and they won’t vote for trapos [traditional politicians] anyway no matter how much they try to sell themselves in graduation ceremonies,” Tamano said.

Muslim senatorial candidate Atty. Adel Tamano today urged for more pro-women laws and more opportunities for women to work and serve in the government, saying that empowered women help form better societies and that the same are part of the Millennium Development Goals (MDGs).

The Nacionalista Party senatorial bet and spokesperson made this statement today, March 8, 2010, during the International Women’s Day celebration. Tamano attended the “Babae, Tagumpay Ka Ng Bayan!” rally at Mendiola, which was spearheaded by Gabriela.

“We should have more pro-women laws such as those that affect maternal health, gender equality, reproductive health rights, women trafficking and violence against women. Let us remember that these very issues are part of the MDGs, which we as a country have agreed to achieve by 2015,” Tamano stressed.

The MDGs are international development goals signed by and agreed upon by 192 United Nations-member states and at least 23 international organizations to be achieved by the year 2015. The eight goals are 1) eradicate extreme poverty and hunger, 2) achieve universal primary education, 3) promote gender equality and empowering women, 4) reduce child mortality, 5) improve maternal health, 6) combat HIV/AIDS, malaria and other diseases, 7) ensure environmental sustainability and 8) develop a Global Partnership for Development.

“Unfortunately for our country, despite the fact that we have a female president, we still see numerous problems affecting women. Just take the case of the reported rampant trafficking of Filipinas to Malaysia. The government must put an immediate stop to that. Hopefully, if I get elected to the Senate, pro-women laws will definitely be on my priority list,” Tamano said.

Tamano, the son of the late Senator Mamintal Tamano and the first ever Filipino-Muslim scholar-graduate of Harvard Law School, also shared that the Islamic world has historically, contrary to the common view, progressive views on women empowerment.

“In fact, many aspects of Islam regarding the rights of women in marriage and their right to property, among others, were deemed revolutionary,” he explained.

The young lawyer also urged for more opportunities for women to serve in the government. Tamano said that of the 17,385 elected public officials from the national down to the local levels, only 3,106 are women. In the Senate, only 4 legislators are women while only 51 out of the 240 congressional seats are occupied by women.

“Women can be great leaders. They’re resourceful, courageous, hardworking and very loving towards their families. With these traits, women leaders can definitely pave the way for women’s advancement and empowerment,” Tamano said.