Lamenting the dire state of the country’s public school facilities, Senator Kiko Pangilinan co-sponsored Senate Bill No. 1482, or the Classroom-Building Acceleration Program, to push for the building of some 600 to 1,000 new classrooms each week.
In his co-sponsorship speech delivered during the Senate’s plenary session, Pangilinan called on his colleagues to pass the proposed measure that would address the backlog in classroom-building for public school learners.
“In closing Mr. President, dear colleagues, the future of education, the strength of our communities, and the dignity of the Filipino learner depend on what we do next,” the veteran legislator said.
“Let us build 600 to 1,000 classrooms every week and help us rebuild with urgency, creativity, and compassion.”
“Let us support the classroom-building acceleration program, and let us build 600 to 1,000 classrooms every week and help us rebuild with urgency, creativity, and compassion,” the seasoned lawmaker added.
The senator pointed out that the backlog in classrooms was not merely a result of the recent typhoons but that the EDCOM II already reported a backlog of some 165,000 classrooms.
He explained that the measure—proposed by Senator Bam Aquino—would reinstate the power for classroom-building back to the Department of Education (DepEd), the local government units (LGUs), and the private sector.
Pangilinan said that under the previous program (of the Aquino administration), 600 school buildings were built each week because of Public-Private Partnerships (PPP) and the matching program wherein the national government and the respective LGUs would share in financing classroom construction.
“Nagawa na noon, kayang gawin ulit ngayon.”
“Nagawa na noon, kayang gawin ulit ngayon at ito ang layunin ng Senate bill 1482,” he stressed.
“Dinisenyo ito para upang maging mabilis, mahusay, at matapat ang pagpapatayo ng mga silid-aralan: walang labis, walang kulang, at higit sa lahat walang kickback,” Pangilinan concluded.
