The Alliance of Concerned Teachers Philippines condemned the Department of Public Works and Highways’ (DPWH) abysmal performance in classroom construction, with only 22 classrooms completed out of 1,700 targeted for 2025 as of October.
“Magnakaw, gusto? Magtayo ng klasrum, ayaw? Napakaliit na nga ng target na 1,700 para tugunan ang 165,000 na kakulangan sa silid-aralan, katiting na bilang pa ang naipatayo ngayong taon at higit 800 ang di pa nasisimulan. Sadyang nakakagalit ito lalo sa gitna ng kalunos-lunos na kalagayan naming mga guro at mag-aaral sa mga eskwela. Libu-libong estudyante ang nagsisiksikan sa mainit at maingay na mga silid, yung iba hinati pa nga at walang pagpipilian kundi magklase sa covered courts at makeshift classrooms. Malinaw na matinding pagpapabaya ito ng estado sa sektor ng edukasyon at sa karapatan ng kabataan sa de-kalidad na edukasyon,” Ruby Bernardo, ACT Chairperson stated.
ACT noted that the extremely low completion rate reveals the government’s true priorities, saying that while the DPWH poured billions into flood control projects—many now under investigation for corruption and anomalies—children’s right to quality education infrastructure was completely abandoned, calling it not mere incompetence but criminal neglect.
ACT expressed skepticism over the proposed Classroom-Building Acceleration Program, which seeks to address the nationwide classroom shortage by involving local government units (LGUs) and the private sector in the construction of classrooms.
“While presented as a solution to the worsening backlog, CBAP effectively shifts the national government’s constitutional duty to provide free, quality education onto local governments and the private sector. Instead of outsourcing its responsibility, the Marcos administration and the DepEd must fix and streamline the classroom construction process, hold erring officials accountable for anomalies and corruption in school building projects, and ensure that agencies mandated to deliver these services are competent, transparent, and credible,” Bernardo underlined.
“While billions are wasted on corruption, public schools continue to suffer from the lack of teachers, education support personnel, classrooms, textbooks, and basic facilities. This is nothing less than a grave injustice to teachers, learners, and the Filipino people,” Bernardo added.
ACT demanded immediate and decisive action from the Marcos administration to address the worsening classroom shortage and the broader education crisis, and reiterated its call for a higher education budget equivalent to 6% of the GDP to resolve the massive shortages, propel learning recovery, and uplift the economic and working conditions of teachers and education workers.#
