MARAWI City–Amid the sound — and sight — of air strikes against the Maute Group and its allies in the main battle area in downtown Marawi, students flocked to the Mindanao State University’s main campus here on Friday, the last day of the extended enrollment period, as officials prepare for the opening of school year on Aug. 22.
Before the armed conflict between government forces and the Maute Group started on May 23, the first semester in this 56-year old stateun university was supposed to begin on Aug. 7. The “war” entered Day 81 on Friday with students stopping at the golf course near the university library from where one can see OV-10 planes dropping bombs on the main battle area five kilometers away.
MSU president Habib Macaayong earlier said they were extending enrollment for another week and expect to open today.
But Lt. Gen. Carlito Galvez, chief of the Western Mindanao Command, said today or Aug. 14 would be too soon, citing security threats that they need to address. He said Aug. 22 would be more feasible.
Galvez on Friday said classes in MSU will begin on Aug. 22.
Officials from the university and the government’s security sector met on Monday to discuss security preparations.
Westmincom’s public information office quoted Galvez as saying that opening the university given the still ongoing challenges posed by terrorist groups in the downtown area is a challenge, “but we have to test the waters and come up with means to bring back the life of Marawi through the opening of this revered institution.”
“The Mindanao State University is the symbol and life of Marawi City. This is the bastion of knowledge and we will have to open classes the soonest,” he said.
A campus clean-up drive involving MSU constituents, representatives of the local government and the Armed Forces, and National Police would be held this week in preparation for the school opening, Col. Romeo Brawner, deputy commander of the Joint Task Group Ranao said.
The MSU main campus during the last school year had a student population of 17,000.
College student population last semester was 12,000, according to Dr. Alma Berowa, MSU System vice president for academic affairs of the MSU System. Of this, 2,210 graduated last month.
“With no freshmen and sophomores coming in as new students due to K to 12, that leaves us with around 10,000. If we will reach 80 percent (enrolees), that would be amazing,” she said.
The MSU alumni have been actively campaigning for students to return to the main campus, even offering free t-shirts, initially for the first 100, increasing it later to the first 300 enrolees.
Ronald Silvosa, department head of the College of Information and Technology, said as of Friday noon, 9,100 students pre-enroled; they were monitored to have gone online to register.
Autonomous Region in MUslim Mindanao Assemblyman Zia Alonto Adiong, spokesperson of the provincial crisis management committee and a member of the MSU’s Board Regents, appealed to university and military officials present during the conference last Monday to use a holistic approach since there are people living within the school compound who are neither school staff nor students.
Adiong cited the need to consult and involve other members of the MSU community so that they know the problem and can take part in the solution.
At the end of the meeting, the officials agreed to craft a security plan involving everyone who has a stake over the MSU operations.
MSU, Adiong said, is “part of our lives. If you lockdown MSU, you might as well drain the lake. If Lake Lanao is the source of our identity, MSU gives meaning to our lives.” (carolyn o. arguillas of mindanews)
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