Alleged DepEd memo orders change to ‘dictatorship’ mentions in curriculum, say teachers’ groups

Teachers' groups over the weekend denounced a reported order by the Department of Education (DepEd) changing the term “Diktadurang Marcos” to “Diktadura” in the new curriculum for elementary students.

The move was said to have been provided for in a September 6, 2023 DepEd memorandum covering Araling Panlipunan for sixth-grade students.

In a statement, Alliance of Concerned Teachers (ACT) Representative and House deputy minority leader France Castro said it was an “attempt to erase the culpability” and “deodorize” the name of Ferdinand Marcos Sr.

She called it "a clear revision of history and an insult to the countless victims of human rights abuses and atrocities committed during the martial law period."

GMA News Online has reached out to DepEd Undersecretary and spokesperson Michael Poa to confirm the supposed memorandum, but has yet to receive a response as of this posting.

Castro said the memorandum is a violation of Republic Act 10368, which provides reparation and recognition of human rights violations during the Marcos regime.

Her sentiments were echoed by teachers group Congress of Teachers/Educators for Nationalism and Democracy (CONTEND), which called on the sector to reject the DepEd’s move which it described as an example of disinformation where people are “deliberately misled by manipulating facts.”

“In a memo dated September 6, 2023, DepEd is set to change 'Diktadurang Marcos' to 'Diktadura' in the Grade 6 Araling Panlipunan curriculum of the newly launched Matatag curriculum,” it said in a statement, referring to the revised Kindergarten to Grade 10 (K-10) curriculum of basic education launched by the DepEd last month.

"[There] is no empirical data to support the DepEd’s decision. In fact, a plethora of historical evidence justify the categorization of 1972 to 1986 as the period of Marcos dictatorship,” CONTEND said. — BM, GMA Integrated News