PRIVATE? | Romualdez gives no clear answer on reported $2M donation to Harvard for Filipino language course|

September 18, 2023 , 01:02 PM

By Beatrice Puente

(September 18, 2023) – House Speaker Martin Romualdez on Sunday neither confirmed nor denied reports that he made a wealthy donation to Harvard University to fund its Filipino language course.

Romualdez said he respects the private policy of Harvard University when it comes to individual gifts. Despite calling the reports speculations, he maintained that the development marked a “significant milestone” for the country.

“I’d like to redirect our attention to the significant milestone achieved—the introduction of the Filipino language course at Harvard,” said Romualdez in a statement. “I firmly believe in promoting and preserving our Filipino identity and this step by Harvard is a testament to that effort.”

Last week, The Harvard Crimson, the university’s student newspaper, quoted a trusted source who confirmed that Romualdez “committed $2 million to endow the Filipino (Tagalog) preceptor position at Harvard,” corroborating a report published by The FilAm last month.

In The FilAm’s article, Romualdez allegedly provided $1 million or P56 million for the creation of the Filipino language course. Inquirer.net, which is part of a media company led by the Romualdez clan, republished the report but eventually took it down, as monitored by the Philippine Center for Investigative Journalism.

“But funding for the preceptor position wasn’t guaranteed to last longer than three years—until Romualdez’s pledge,” according to the Harvard Crimson.

Although Romualdez, the cousin of President Bongbong Marcos Jr., did not respond to requests for comment, the Harvard Crimson report mentioned a gathering he attended with the Filipino community in Massachusetts, which included Harvard University students, wherein he “expressed his full support” for the new language course, based on a press release from his office last April.

“The press release includes quotes from Romualdez lauding the creation of the Filipino (Tagalog) course, but does not reference any donation to the school,” added the report.

Romualdez ended his statement by reiterating the supposed positive impact of the introduction of a Filipino language course in one of the most esteemed educational institutions in the world.

“I firmly believe in promoting and preserving our Filipino identity and this step by Harvard is a testament to that effort,” said Romualdez. “Let’s embrace this moment of pride and unity for our country and language.”

Before the release of Romualdez’s statement, the Campaign Against the Return of the Marcoses and Martial Law (CARMMA) questioned the secrecy clouding his reported donation.

Reiterating that “language teaching is political,” CARMMA said the reasoning that teaching Filipino language abroad could be a way to “propagate Filipino culture” must not be taken at face value because it can also be used to “spread historical distortion.”

“If Harvard really sees the importance of including the teaching of Filipino in its curriculum, why do Filipinos need to fund it? Why should the money come from us, from a poor country to the richest university in the world?” said CARMMA. “The historical revisionism and narrative change of the Marcoses truly know no bounds.”

(PM)

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