QUEZON CITY, (PIA) -- Vice President and Education Secretary Sara Duterte on Tuesday said the Department of Education (DepEd) will comply with any congress proceedings relating to the “no permit, no exam” bill, which could affect all primary and secondary private educational institutions being supervised by the agency.

“Let us wait for the discussions doon sa (in) Congress with regards doon sa mga batas (to the bills),” Duterte said in an interview.

The Senate of the Philippines has approved Senate Bill 1359 on its third and final reading, which prohibits schools from barring students who have not paid their tuition and other fees from taking exams.

The education chief said the DepEd is completely committed to taking part in all of the hearings that are held by Congress.

Meanwhile, Duterte said that DepEd plans to hire more new teachers annually in a bid to address the problem on the lack of teaching personnel. (PIA-NCR)