The College Student Council – School of Business and Accountancy (CSC-SBA) questioned the due process and constitutional basis of the suspension imposed by the HAU Student Government (HAUSG) High Court in a ruling released on November 9.
In an interview with CSC-SBA Governor Lance Miguel Angeles, he said the council and the Office of Student Affairs (OSA) were called by the Commission on Student Organizations (CSO) to a meeting on October 20 to discuss fabricated evaluation data, insufficient assessments, and possible sanctions concerning SBA Days 2026.
Angeles said the council was not informed of the possibility of suspension and had expected to receive a warning from OSA over the fabricated and incomplete event evaluations.
“Nagkaroon ng meeting with the CSO [and OSA], we were told that we would be given a warning and a decision based doon sa 30-minute meeting namin. We do not actually see it as a proceeding, it was just a meeting,” he recalled.
He added, “Ang sabi is pag-iisipan muna nila ‘yung sanctions, then definitely magkakaroon kami ng warning. Wala kaming idea na masu-suspend ‘yung buong CSC-SBA.”
According to Angeles, the High Court finalized its suspension ruling a day after the October 20 meeting. However, he claimed the council had not received prior notice of an ongoing case or an opportunity to formally respond to the allegations.
“Suddenly, there was a final ruling na that was made. But, prior to the ruling, wala kaming na-receive na notice na meron kaming ongoing case, where the sanction applies to the whole organization,” he said.
Angeles also said the council received an email informing them of the final sanction only on November 6, more than two weeks after the ruling was finalized.
The council subsequently sought to appeal the decision through OSA. However, Angeles said the Chief Justice affirmed that the ruling was non-appealable.
“The email, ‘yun na ‘yung final. Final ruling na siya without hearing, without compromises, and without actually being able to explain our side — aside from the 30-minute meeting na nagkaroon kami with OSA, which was actually not organized by the High Court themselves. It was organized by the CSO. So, the High Court, nag-decision siya without actually giving us a notice on the case,” he explained.
Angeles also questioned whether the October 20 meeting could be considered a formal hearing, noting that it had been organized by the CSO rather than the High Court.
“High Court may consider it a hearing, but on our side, it was not organized by them. I believe that hearings, if we are going to take it legally, are conducted and organized — not by a commission — but by the judicial body,” he said.
Meanwhile, CSC-SBA Vice Governor Jumala Sison questioned the High Court’s authority to suspend the entire council, citing provisions of the HAUSG Constitution that she said limit its suspension powers to individual officers.
“We would like to point out that based on the constitution, the High Court is not authorized to suspend the whole CSC-SBA or the whole council. They are only authorized to suspend officers. So we want to appeal because of that, since wala talagang due process na nangyari,” Sison said.
Meanwhile, HAU – University Student Council (HAU-USC) President Aerith Claude Catap issued a manifestation letter addressed to the HAUSG High Court, expressing support for the call for accountability while questioning the constitutional basis for suspending the entire council.
“…the decision itself acknowledges that the leaders’ admission does not prove that every member of the council is at fault. Yet, the suspension covers the whole council, including members whose responsibility has not been established,” Catap wrote.
Section 1 under the Offenses and Sanctions provisions of the 2024 HAUSG Constitution states that no student shall be punished without due process.
The constitution, however, does not expressly identify learner groups as entities subject to the same sanctions for serious offenses.
Angeles admits fabricated survey data
Meanwhile, Angeles acknowledged the council’s responsibility for submitting fabricated evaluation data in its narrative reports for SBA Days 2026.
He explained that several activities received no evaluation responses, prompting officers to submit reports containing inaccurate figures based on their own assessments as the submission deadline approached.
“Yes, it’s true na ‘yung mga evaluation na nilagay namin, some of those is, wala talaga silang backed-up data, since wala kaming na-receive na backed-up data at all. So, wala rin kaming ilalagay. With the given deadline na three days, nag-conduct kami ng activity, nangyari ‘yung activity, wala kaming malalagay talaga doon. So that’s why, naglagay kami ng data based only on our perception,” he said.
Angeles also said the council was unaware of the separate evaluation form administered by OSA.
“We weren’t oriented on how those documents work, na meron palang evaluation ang OSA on that end. Nalaman lang namin siya after naming mag-submit ng mga narrative reports namin — though meron naman kaming sariling evaluation forms,” he admitted.
CSC-SBA addresses SBA community
Angeles assured SBA students that the council’s essential functions, including department-wide announcements and grievance-related services, would continue despite the suspension.
He also said the council would pursue available avenues for reconsideration through OSA.
“Of course, the suspension of CSC-SBA is not the end of us. We will appeal and try all the reconsiderations that we can gain para ma-halt siya,” Angeles said.
He added that the council intends to seek a temporary restraining order against the High Court’s ruling to allow its operations to continue while it challenges the decision.
“We will also file for a temporary restraining order for the decision ng High Court, para sana kahit papaano, our operations will continue while we are questioning the due process that wasn’t given to us. We would also like to reassure that the ongoing issue has nothing to do with the services we are providing,” he said.
