ALMOST two decades ago, as a newly minted lawyer, I was requested to appear before the Commission on Higher Education (CHED) by a college that was summoned by the commission to represent itself in a complaint filed by students involved in a frat war. The students, through their lawyer, sought the commission's intervention to nullify the decision of the college's discipline board to exclude the students who were involved in the violent incident. After hearings were conducted, the decision of the college prevailed. But not until after hearings and conferences were held like we were in a mini court trial at the Development Academy of the Philippines building where the CHED previously held office. The college was forced to defend its decision to sanction the students as if the final judgment on the matter rests upon the commission.
The Commission on Higher Education is a regulatory agency in charge of the governance of higher education. However, it is not a quasi-judicial agency that has the power granted by Congress to adjudicate or settle actual controversies or even award damages to students. It is not also vested by law with appellate jurisdiction over actions or decisions of colleges and universities over the discipline of students, except when expulsion is imposed upon a student, which requires the approval of the chairman of the Commission on Higher Education.
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