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ASSEMBLAGE: At a gathering of young leaders at Teachers Camp in Baguio City last June 16, Baguio-based filmmaker Kidlat Tahimik announced that he would surrender his National Artist medallion as a personal and symbolic protest against the Commission on Higher Education’s (CHED) Reframed General Education Curriculum (RGEC). He criticized the proposal as a “regression backwards to our colonial-imposed education.”

In his position paper addressed to CHED Chairperson Dr. Shirley C. Agrupis, he also wrote how artificial intelligence is “the main force that ejects the humanities, regional languages, social ethics, cultural values, and our bayani stories—outside-d-kulambu of education.”

“[I]t’s a waste of time for classrooms to indulge in compassionate ethics (pakipag-kapwa), in communal inter-person relations (ginhawa), in harmony with nature (kapwa-kalikasan), and in spiritual balancing (kagandang loob). These unquantifiables are invisible in the econometrists’ balance-sheet of ‘progress’,” he also wrote.

Tahimik was reported to have returned his medallion to the National Commission on Culture and the Arts today, June 17.

Kidlat Tahimik renounces National Artist privileges in protest of CHED curriculum proposal

By Mia Magdalena Fokno
June 16, 2026

BAGUIO CITY – National Artist for Film Kidlat Tahimik said on Tuesday, June 16, that he is prepared to surrender his National Artist medallion and renounce the privileges associated with the award in protest of a proposed overhaul of the college general education curriculum.

The filmmaker made the announcement during a gathering of young leaders participating in the BAGANI: Rising Leaders Development Program at Teachers Camp in Baguio City.

In a position paper addressed to Commission on Higher Education (CHED) Chairperson Shirley Agrupis, Tahimik criticized the agency’s proposed Reframed General Education Curriculum (RGEC), which originally sought to reduce the minimum number of general education units in undergraduate degree programs from 36 to 18 or 21.

“As a protest, I am surrendering my prestigious medallion of the Order of National Artists and I will forego my National Artist amenities,” Tahimik wrote. He described the move as a symbolic gesture intended to draw attention to what he sees as the diminishing role of culture, history, ethics, and the humanities in higher education.

The proposal has drawn criticism from educators, academic organizations, universities, and student groups, who warned that reducing general education requirements and consolidating some subjects could weaken students’ exposure to the humanities and social sciences while potentially affecting faculty members who teach those courses.

The controversy comes more than a month after CHED announced that implementation of the proposed curriculum reforms would be deferred until 2028 following widespread opposition and consultations with stakeholders nationwide.

Speaking at a press conference in May, Agrupis said the commission would conduct further studies and consultations before making any final decision on the curriculum.

CHED has said the proposed reforms aim to address concerns about possible duplication between senior high school and college courses, provide greater flexibility for higher education institutions, and respond to changing educational and industry demands.

The commission has also said it is reviewing concerns raised by universities, professional organizations, and faculty groups regarding institutional autonomy, curriculum flexibility, and the potential impact on teaching personnel.

Tahimik’s criticism extends beyond the number of units required in college programs.

In his position paper, he argued that education policies increasingly prioritize measurable skills and workforce competitiveness while giving less attention to cultural identity, ethical formation, history, and community values.

He described the proposed reduction in general education courses as part of a broader trend toward competency-based education that, in his view, risks sidelining subjects that help students understand culture, society, and their relationship with others.

Tahimik also raised concerns about the growing influence of artificial intelligence and economic pressures on educational systems, arguing that schools should continue to nurture critical thinking, cultural awareness, ethics, and civic responsibility alongside technical and professional skills.

Tahimik, whose real name is Eric Oteyza de Guia, was proclaimed National Artist for Film in 2018. Often called the father of Philippine independent cinema, he is known internationally for films that explore development, colonialism, indigenous knowledge, and cultural identity. He studied Speech and Drama at the University of the Philippines Diliman, where he served as student council president, before earning an MBA from the Wharton School of the University of Pennsylvania. A former economist and lecturer at the UP College of Mass Communication, he was conferred an honorary Doctor of Humanities degree by the University of the Cordilleras in 2021.

In his letter, he stressed that his action is a personal protest and should not reflect on his fellow National Artists.

Whether his symbolic gesture will influence policy remains uncertain.

But for Tahimik, the debate is ultimately about the direction of Philippine education itself.

“If this elementary-level menu is today being extended to college levels, quo vadis?” he wrote before ending his letter with a call to action: “Sugod mga Kapatid!!! Bawi-in ang LIWANAG ng ating kultura’t kasaysayan sa curricula!”

Photo by Art Tibaldo

When an true artist is more concerned about his nation more than his award....

EDUCATION REFORM THAT FORGETS HUMANITY IS NOT REFORM AT ALL

National Artist Kidlat Tahimik has renounced his title and returned his medallion in protest against the proposed CHED general education curriculum overhaul, warning against what he sees as the erosion of culture, history and civic consciousness in education.

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"Anchor of Hope"
When the art sector is actively showing his work this helps the creatives not only to hone their painted message. It gives confidence as platforms are available on site. The West Philippine Sea Mural competition all over the archipelago is a good exercise where art provides a non-verbal outlet for complex emotions that are often difficult to put into words, such as grief, trauma, or anger. It allows you to externalize and process these feelings safely.

Instead of shouting in protest Mural paintings shifts away from daily anxieties and enters a state of "flow"—a meditative state where time seems to disappear. It defines the colors behind the perked up emotions in protest which is less verbal. It is instilled in the heart with colors and lines as the painted message creep into the streets of Antipolo along Mahabang Parang. Instead of graffiti art, that spells names in style, the figurative interpretation of a nation's situation is narrated with hope to be heard and forces you to think outside the box.

That's the power of art, thats how creative community eases the unspoken pain in your neighborhood.

Araw ng Kalayaan at Vespa:
An Architect artistic expression is the externalization of the internal human experience. It is how we take abstract thoughts, raw emotions, cultural identities, and fleeting observations and translate them into a tangible medium that others can see, hear, feel, or experience.

At its core, it is a form of communication that picks up where literal language falls short.

Art bridges people it inspires.... be inspired!