The Technical Education and Skills Development Authority (TESDA) cautions the public to be wary of fake issues of the National Certificates (NC) in their areas.

Following the arrest of a 46-year old local named Ricky Calunsag Esteves for selling counterfeit NCs last August 15 in his home in Ipil, Zamboanga Sibugay, Secretary Isidro Lapeña has called on the agency’s regional and provincial directors in Zamboanga Peninsula (Region IX) to condemn the act and push for a larger campaign to protect the integrity of NCs issued by TESDA.

The provincial director of TESDA Zamboanga Sibugay said the police and the military in the area closely monitored Esteves as reports reached them that fake NCs are allegedly sold to applicants in the PNP and military. An operation was thereafter conducted to catch Esteves red-handed.

Esteves was immediately arrested for violation of Article 172 (Falsification by private individual and use of public documents) of the Revised Penal Code. He is currently detained in the municipal jail facility and is facing the penalty of prison correccional or six months and one day to six years imprisonment and a fine not exceeding P5,000.00 for making up invalid NCs.

After receiving a report on said arrest, the regional director of TESDA Zamboanga Peninsula immediately gave instructions to the provincial office concerned to coordinate with authorities for the purpose of strengthening the case against Esteves, and has called on the public to report any activity of NC distribution outside of TESDA offices. “In the spirit of participatory governance, I denounce this crime and I appeal to the public to work with us in protecting the integrity of TESDA's processes,” added the regional director.

TESDA is the only authority that can issue NCs to assessed and validated skilled workers under certain qualifications. NCs are given after workers pass the Competency Assessment Examination where they are tested if they can perform to the standards expected in the workplace.

TESDA also prioritizes the integrity of its qualification systems and complies with the Philippine TVET Competency Assessment and Certification System (PTCACS) in certifying middle-level workers to ensure their productivity, quality, and global competitiveness. This is also the very reason behind stringent accreditation of TESDA training and assessment centers, trainers, and assessors in and outside the country.

The public can easily spot authenticated NCs from fake ones. TESDA-issued NCs are notably printed on security paper, dry-sealed, signed by the Director General, countersigned with the initials of the regional or provincial director concerned, and are printed in a certain manner.

Additionally, TESDA has a Registry of Certified Workers readily available online so one can check the pool of certified workers for certain occupations nationwide. It can be browsed on the TESDA Website.

TESDA stands by its quality statement, continuing to demonstrate competence, institutional integrity, personal commitment, and a deep sense of nationalism in service of the Filipino labor force and measuring stakeholder satisfaction through strategic decisions, effectiveness, responsiveness, added value, integrity, citizen focus, and efficiency. (END)