Kabataan Partylist

The Kabataan Party and the National Union of Students of the Philippines (NUSP) today expressed concern over the appointment of Romulo Neri to the Commission on Higher Education (CHED), saying his selection fits perfectly well to government plan to institute corporate control of tertiary education.

“Neri’s appointment to CHED is consistent with the Arroyo administration’s long term plan to reduce government sponsorship and financing of state schools and eventually hand over full control and supervision of tertiary education to the private sector,” Kabataan Party President Raymond Palatino said.

Palatino added that the appointment of the government’s chief economist as higher education czar could mean institutionalization of pure market mechanisms in regulating educational exchanges in public education.

“We fear that his appointment could lead to the imposition of management and efficiency models borrowed from the business sector as a framework for educational decision-making. This would only reinforce government thrust to commodify education and treat state schools not as national agencies performing socially oriented activities and hence entitled to government subsidy but as income-earning entities,” he pointed out.

“Such a shift in decision-making framework could translate to the idea of state schools operating like semi-corporations and continued deregulation of tertiary education, leaving millions of college students and hopefuls at the mercy of school owners and businesses.”

For his part, NUSP Secretary General Alvin Peters criticized the priorities of the new CHED leadership to reassess the relevance of tertiary education with regard to business interests and bank on vocational-technical education.

Peters said there are far more important and basic issues that warrant CHED’s immediate and decisive action which can’t be resolved by existing knee-jerk programs on education.

He particularly emphasized the urgent need to put an end to unabated tuition hikes and imposition of exorbitant fees in schools and resolve the controversy created by CHED’s hasty lifting of the tuition cap in the middle of school consultations last February.

“The first thing that CHED must do is to live up to its own mandate of ensuring that the youth have access to quality education and curb the increasing number of college dropouts and out-of-school youth.”

“We’ve had enough of education officials who compromise education for business interests or even conspire and act as willing accomplices of school owners. What higher education needs is a CHED chairman who has political will and independence to stand up to private school owners and even Malacañang.”

The Kabataan Party today challenged first termers and members of the 14th Congress to offset its predecessor’s dismal performance by being a more productive and independent legislature.

The youth group issued the challenge as it led some 5,000 members of students groups and militant youth organizations in today’s State of the Nation address (SONA) demonstrations in Commonwealth Avenue near Batasang Pambansa.

“The challenge on the 14th Congress is to restore the public’s faith on the legislature and make Congress the repository of the people’s sovereign will once again. They should prove to us that they are worthy of the people’s vote and support,” Kabataan Party President Raymond Palatino said.

Palatino warned the members of the 14th Congress not to follow its predecessor which the group considers as “one of the worst Congresses the country ever had.”

“The 13th Congress operated like mindless accomplice to Arroyo’s whims, reducing itself to a band of political mongrels and lapdogs. Its failure to function as a legislative body and produce more human development laws only made life harder for Filipinos. Much of the pitiful condition that Filipinos are currently experiencing should be blamed on the past Congress’ doing or undoing,” he lamented.

“The poor performance of the 13th Congress only mirrors out the failure of the Arroyo government to live up to its promise of making Filipinos’ lives better,” Palatino pointed out.

He cited the study made by Philippine Legislators’ Committee on Population and Development (PLCPD) which shows the dismal record of the 13th Congress in terms of the number and quality of bills and laws the legislature deliberated for the past three years.

At the House of Representatives, 6,115 bills were filed. Those pending in the committees reached 3,883. Bills approved after third reading were 787. In the Senate, 2,619 bills were filed while only 22 made it to the plenary after passing the 3rd reading. Of the bills approved by both Houses, only 88 were enacted into law. There are 64 pending bills waiting for President Gloria Arroyo’s signature.

Palatino particularly criticized the past Congress’ failure to pass pending bills which would institute much-needed reforms in the education sector. Among the shelved education bills are the proposed moratorium on tuition and other fee increases and amendments to the Education Act of 1982 which deregulated the tuition system.

“The legislature’s inability to act on these proposals did not just cost a setback on education reforms but it meant a lost opportunity for thousands of poor students to continue their education.”

Palatino also blamed the grossly inadequate allocation for education spending and Congress’ previous failures to enact a national budget for the decrepit condition and declining quality of education in the country’s public school system.

He said the tuition hike in the University of the Philippines is a poignant example of the implications of annual cutbacks in state schools’ budget and government thrust to completely handover the control of tertiary education to the private sector.

He however expressed hope that the incoming 14th Congress would veer away from the poor record of its predecessor.

Palatino said the big number of first termers particularly in the Lower House could mean more openness on its part to new and progressive ideas and proposals. There are 106 neophyte lawmakers in the new Lower House.

“But the only way this Congress can do that is by being more independent of Malacanang and by listening more to people’s clamor than to the president’s dictates. The current state of the nation warrants a gutsy Congress that has political will and can stand up to Arroyo.”

What legacy?
Worst education tragedies happened under GMA, youth groups say

The Kabataan Party and the National Union of Students of the Philippines today disproved government claim of making education its legacy, saying the past six years under the Arroyo administration witnessed education’s worst tragedies.

Kabataan Party President Raymond Palatino said the administration is trying desperately to paint a rosy picture of the education sector in time for the president’s State-of-the-Nation address (SONA).

“Arroyo’s claims are far-fetched. In fact, these are the exact opposite of reality. Education would be the last thing in this government’s mind.”

“Mrs. Arroyo must still be living in her self-induced fairy tale. Her stories are not only illusory; the president herself is a poor storyteller. Even a Grade 1 student would not believe her.”

Palatino said the dismal state of public education, the growing number of school dropouts and out-of-school youth, and the declining quality of education show the real state of education in the country. “Even government figures will tell the public otherwise.”

He said the disheartening stories of Julie Albior and Flores Biwang who were the topnotchers in last year’s National Achievement Test (NAT) are poignant examples of state abandonment of the youth and education. They failed to enter college in the University of the Philippines due to poverty.

“Albior and Biwang represent the millions of poor but intelligent students who are forced to skip schooling because of rising cost of education and decreasing family incomes.”

Palatino added that the 300-percent tuition hike in UP this year even made college education more elusive to ordinary Filipino youth.

“With more preventive fees being charged both in private institutions and state schools, more Albiors and Biwangs failed to enroll for this school year.”

Palatino put the blame on the Arroyo administration, saying current policies on education and government’s disregard allow private institutions to charge onerous and dubious fees on students and transform public schools to corporate entities.

“Since 2001, the government encouraged the reduction of subsidies for public universities. This forced schools either to accept fewer students or to raise fees,” he said.

“Parallel to annual cuts in state schools budgets, the Commission on Higher Education (CHED) suspended the tuition cap leading to imposition of higher fees this school year,” he added.

For his part, NUSP Secretary General Alvin Peters said students are now gearing up for the mammoth rally on July 23 to take on the Arroyo government’s abandonment of education.

“Not even the weather or the possible suspension of classes can stop thousands of youth and students to go to the streets on Monday to present the real state of education and the nation.”

“The only legacy this government can boast of is Arroyo’s unparalleled dishonesty and corruption. No amount of lies and deception in this SONA however can make us believe otherwise. The people know better,” Peters concluded.

Students warn of a mid-quarter ‘storm’ vs GMA

The Kabataan Party today warned that Malacanang’s recent shove to outlaw the Communist Party and use the Terror Law against insurgents presage possible crackdown against organizations identified with the legal Left.

“The Terror Law is not really intended to go after communist rebels but is designed to legitimize the government’s all-out war policy against the legal progressive movement which has remained the staunchest critics of the Arroyo administration,” Kabataan Party President Raymond Palatino said.

Palatino said the government and military’s ongoing vilification campaign and red-baiting against militant organizations and anti-Arroyo party lists come as a convenient approach to justify concentrated attack against the legal Left.

“The Terror Law is a retrogression to the dark years of martial rule when organizations critical of the Marcos regime were outlawed and dissent was considered a subversive act. The only difference now is the label terrorism.”

“Such scenario vulnerably opens civilian or non-combatants to military harassment and even liquidation. If the military can make people disappear and kill activists in broad day light even with the existing legal and Constitutional restraints, what would keep it from doing more now that the Anti-Terror law will soon be in place? The Terror Law only feeds the growing killer monster that Arroyo created out of her insecurity and greed,” Palatino pointed out.

Meanwhile, the National Union of Students of the Philippines (NUSP) warned the Arroyo administration of a brewing mid-quarter ‘storm’ should the government continue to implement the Terror law and use it against its critics.

“A storm of student protests will engulf schools and the streets in the coming weeks as an act of defiance against this draconian measure. We will not allow this government to rob the youth and the people again of hard-won freedoms and civil liberties,” NUSP Secretary General Alvin Peters said.

Peters said the NUSP and Kabataan will hold a series of noise barrages during lunch hours and protest actions in various universities nationwide starting next week until Arroyo’s State of the Nation Address on July 23.

“We will not be cowed. We have defied the Calibrated Preemptive Response, the No-Permit-No-Rally policy and the Presidential Proclamation 1017 and will continue to defy the Terror Law. The students and youth will be at the forefront of the nation’s crusade to defend democracy and human rights against anyone who threatens it.”

Schools could be the next target for military deployment, the Kabataan Party warned following the redeployment of troops in several urban poor communities in Metro Manila.

But the plan is already drawing flak from human rights groups and the academe and is expected to meet strong opposition from students.

“We find little comfort from the fact that the military has been implicated in extra-judicial killings and enforced disappearances whose victims include student leaders and activists. Whether in full battle gear on in plain clothing, their mere presence sends a chilling effect among students, faculty and school personnel,” Kabataan Party President Raymond Palatino said.

“The labeling of progressive groups including student organizations as communist fronts and Mrs. Arroyo’s recent admission that the Anti-Terror Law will be used against Reds only prove that this plan is intended to target progressive student organizations and even student councils and publications that are critical of the Arroyo administration,” he pointed out.

Palatino expressed fears that the deployment of troops in major colleges and universities in Metro Manila and other key cities could lead to an escalation of human rights violations.

“Such plan makes any student vulnerable to surveillance, harassment and even abduction and liquidation.”

“Such fears are not without basis. Two Kabataan poll watchers were murdered in Camarines Norte last May following the brutal killings of known student leaders Cris Hugo, Farly Alcantara and Reimon Guran in other parts of Bicol. UP student activists Karen Empeno and Sherlyn Cadapan have gone missing to this day. All evidences and witnesses point to one common perpetrator – the military.”

Meanwhile, Palatino said student groups are prepared to oppose the troop deployment through legal and even “extra-legal” means.

He also challenged Senator Antonio Trillanes and newly-elected lawmakers to look into the matter and conduct an immediate investigation once the next Congress starts its formal session.

“Military troops have no place in academic institutions. Schools are not war zones. We will not allow this government to transform our schools into garrisons and make students their target practices.”

Gov’t meddling yields fewer marginalized groups in 14th Congress

The Kabataan Party called on lawmakers to amend the Party list law following the disappointing outcome of the 2007 elections that resulted to fewer marginalized groups clinching representation in the Lower House.

“The results of the elections only show how Malacanang was able to maximize the flaws of the party list law and the electoral system to disenfranchise parties in the very mechanism that was created to give representation to marginalized sectors,” Kabataan Party President Raymond Palatino said.

Palatino said the disenfranchisement of marginalized groups was aggravated further by the Commission on Elections’ decision to implement the Panganiban formula where only the number one party list will be given three seats.

Related post: Anti-Arroyo party lists could be Terror law’s first target

“The bastardization of the party list system warrants fundamental changes in the Party list law to protect it from being manipulated for political gains. The outcome of the elections should be an eye-opener to everyone how selfish political interests and ambitions have already penetrated it.”

He explained the entry of bogus partylist groups allegedly sponsored by Malacanang and local politicians and vote-padding favoring these groups had a big impact on the chances of Kabataan, Suara Bangsamoro and other sectoral parties of elderly, disabled and national minorities in meeting the two-percent threshold and clinching a seat in Congress. Militant party list groups and election watchdogs pegged the padded votes at 2 million.

“But what makes dagdag-bawas activities different in this party list race is that the padding of votes for certain groups were not actually intended to increase their chances to meet the threshold but merely to bloat the total number of party list votes,” he pointed out.

“This explains the huge increase in the threshold compared to the figures in 2004 elections. It made things more difficult for legitimate political and sectoral parties to win representation.” COMELEC initially pegged the two-percent threshold at 340,000 votes, up by almost 100,000 votes from the 254,000 threshold in the 2004 elections.

He added that the victory of some party list groups such as Abono and the sudden increase in the number of votes of YACAP (You Against Corruption and Poverty) and alleged government party lists in Mindanao, particularly after the contentious Maguindanao canvassing casts doubts over the credibility of the recent party list polls and COMELEC itself.

“What’s problematic about these results is most of these alleged government parties don’t have a clear constituency or base in these areas but they were able to corner in votes as big as 100,000 in just one province, edging out even Muslim and Mindanao-based party list groups. Abono, on the other hand, was able to get two-thirds of its votes in La Union and Pangasinan alone.” Abono allegedly was supported by the Ortega clan in La Union and Speaker Jose de Venecia.

“The discrepancies in the total number of votes cast and the number of registered voters in several areas in Mindanao and the unusual huge turnout for party list should be enough proof that irregularities did occur in these provinces last elections. Unfortunately, the COMELEC only turned a blind eye on these evidences.”

Palatino, however, expressed fears that moves to amend the Party list law might experience the same cold treatment in Congress.

“It would be more difficult to push for changes in the Party list law now after politicians have already seen how the party list system can be used to expand their influence and clinch more seats in the Lower House.”

Youth groups vow to defy ATL

Anti-Arroyo party list groups could be the first casualties of the Anti-Terrorism Law, a youth group warned.

Kabataan Party President Raymond Palatino said ATL gives the Arroyo government another opportunity to finally remove militant and anti-Arroyo party lists in the Lower House which emerged victorious in the recent elections despite government-initiated vilification campaign and massive vote rigging.

“Only a few marginalized groups were able to clinch representation in the 14th Congress. We fear that with the implementation of the Anti-Terrorism Law, they will be fewer before the next Congress can even start its formal session.”

He said progressive party lists like Bayan Muna, Anakpawis and Gabriela, and other anti-Arroyo groups in Congress had always been the subject of government vilification, harassment and even liquidation, as seen with the spate of extra-judicial killings and forced disappearances victimizing leaders and members of these groups.

“These groups could suffer the same fate as that of the representatives of the Democratic Alliance during the Philippine Assembly time who were expelled for their nationalist stance after being tagged as subversives. The only difference now is anti-Arroyo lawmakers will be called terrorists.”

But even more vulnerable are anti-Arroyo groups which were not able to clinch representation in this Congress and other progressive organizations, Palatino said.

“The vagueness of the law, particularly the definition of terrorism, allows more room for subjective interpretation and abuse. The human rights record and insecurity of this regime provide little assurance that this government will not use the law to go after its critics.”

Meanwhile, Palatino said Kabataan and other student groups have already started a massive information campaign in various schools in the country to expose the flaws of ATL.

“The youth and students will not be cowed and we are prepared and determined to defy any law that curtails civil liberties and political rights. We have already defied the No-Permit-No-Rally policy, Calibrated Preemptive Response and Presidential Proclamation 1017. No amount of intimidation and threat or any draconian measure can make us think otherwise.”

He said Kabataan Party and other youth and student groups will join the multi-sectoral rally against ATL on July 13.

Students and youth groups under Kabataan Party trooped to Heart Center today to greet Anakpawis Representative Crispin Beltran who is finally coming out from hospital arrest this afternoon.

Kabataan Party President Raymond Palatino said Ka Bel’s resilience and determination to stand up to government abuses and harassment is worthy of the youth’s emulation.

“Ka Bel serves as a good example for this new generation of young Filipinos to never get tired of fighting for truth, justice and democracy. He is a living inspiration for every youth to defy any draconian measure that threatens to curtail civil liberties and human rights.”

Palatino also lauded the Supreme Court’s final decision to dismiss the rebellion charges against Beltran and the Batasan 5, saying the high court’s ruling serves as an early warning to the Arroyo administration to think twice before implementing the Anti-terrorism law in its own whim.

“This should teach Mrs. Arroyo and her cohorts that they cannot always have their way and bend law to their favor. The decision is an admonition to this administration not to use the Human Security Act to curtail civil liberties and rights and go after its critics.”

Palatino expressed confidence that the Supreme Court will also strike down the Anti-Terror law and government policy of redeploying military troops in Metro Manila as unconstitutional once civil libertarians and militant groups bring the matter to the high court.

“We remain positive that the Supreme Court will continue to side with the people and stand up to any attempt by this administration to govern above the rule of law.”

Low freshman enrolment rate in UP blamed on 300% tuition hike

The Kabataan Party today said the University of the Philippines lost a significant percentage of the best and brightest incoming college freshmen this school year after the 300 percent fee increase which pegged the premiere state university’s tuition at P 1,000 per unit.

Kabataan Party President and former UP Diliman Student Council Chair Raymond Palatino said the low enrolment turn-out in UP campuses is distressing.

“The low enrolment figures only confirmed our fears that the 300 percent tuition hike will result into massive disenfranchisement of qualified college hopefuls and higher dropout rate,” Palatino lamented.

Enrolment records show most of the autonomous and constituent campuses of the UP system failed to hit the 50 percent mark in freshmen enrolment rate. An article in the Philippine Collegian reported that only the Diliman and Manila campuses registered freshmen enrolment rates which are higher than 50 percent – 69.13 and 54.88 percent, respectively.

Badly hit by the low turn-outs were the Los Banos and Mindanao campuses, with 16.67 amd 16.76, respectively, Palatino said.

While the Diliman campus, the largest campus, registered the highest freshmen turn-out, he said a big number of UPCAT (UP College Admission Test) qualifiers in Diliman either deferred or failed to confirm for enrolment earlier this month.

Data from the Office of the University Registrar in UP Diliman show that 1,331 freshmen or 34.7 percent of the total 3,825 UPCAT UP Diliman qualifiers did not confirm for enrolment.

He added that the high no-show rate in UP campuses subsequently caused a staggering decline in enrolment figures for several degree programs, with some registering a zero enrolment turn-out. The BA Filipino, BA Araling Pilipino, and BA Malikhaing Pagsulat sa Filipino offered by the Departamento ng Filipino at Panitikan in UP Diliman all had a zero turn-out.

Palatino blamed the tuition hike for the low freshmen enrolment rate in UP, saying high fees discouraged many parents and UPCAT passers to choose the state university and enroll for this school year.

“Before, passing the UPCAT was both an honor and a relief for parents who would no longer have to worry about high tuition and other school fees. But with a higher tuition rate, parents now had to think twice before sending their children to UP.”

He said poor but deserving students coming from the provinces and public schools were affected the most.

“The 300 percent tuition hike prevented bright students from depressed and remote areas of the country from enroling in UP and eventually forced them to settle for poorly-maintained state colleges in the provinces or worse, give up their college dream.”

Palatino said the UP administration and the government should have already learned its lessons from the last year’s education tragedy wherein two National Achievement Test topnotchers Julie Albior and Flores Biwang failed to enrol in the university and enter college because of poverty.

He also appealed to the UP BOR to withdraw its earlier decision and consider the interest and welfare of the future Iskolars ng Bayan.

“More than generating funds, UP as the ‘University of the People’ should ensure that higher education is accessible to ordinary young Filipinos. What are state universities for if poor but deserving students can’t enrol just because of preventive school fees? Not only does it defeat the purpose for the creation of state schools but it only highlights the more devastating crisis and tragedy that await the educational system this school year.”

The Kabataan Party today said more college students opted to transfer to state universities and colleges (SUCs) this year due to rising cost of education in private schools.

Records of the Commission on Higher Education (CHED) show an exodus of college students enrolled in private schools to SUCs over the last two decades. In 1980, only 10 percent of college students were studying in state schools. By 1994, the number went up to 21 percent and at present already accounts for almost 40 percent of tertiary population.

“But many of these transferees will find themselves dropping out of college,” Kabataan Party President Raymond Palatino said. He warned that this will result in a higher number of college dropouts this coming semester.

“The problem is, there are no more rooms in state schools either,” he added.

“State schools are plagued by similar problems. Not only are they few now and their enrolment quotas limited, they are also haunted by increases in tuition and other fees thus forcing many state scholars to leave.”

Palatino said that access to public higher education institutions, which are the last resort for students who want to obtain a college degree, has become impossible to many college hopefuls.

“While it is true that SUCs offer a tuition lower than private schools,
tuition rate and miscellaneous fees in state schools and universities have seen the biggest increases in recent years, thus making it also inaccessible to ordinary students.”

He said the annual cutbacks in the education budget and the government’s rationalization policy which seeks to reduce the number of state schools led to hike in school fees and subsequent decline in enrollment.

From 271 in 1996, the number of public tertiary institutions went down to only 111 in 2006. CHED figures also show declining enrollment figures in public tertiary since 1997, from a growth rate of 20.75 percent that year to only 0.9 percent by 2002.

Palatino added that SUCs are also forced to accept only a limited number of students due to financial constraints.

This year, only 12,053 applicants qualified in the University of the Philippines College Admission Test (UPCAT). More than 60,000 high school graduates all over the country take the UPCAT every year.

On the other hand, only 8,523 college hopefuls qualified in the Polytechnic University of the Philippines College Entrance Test (PUPCET) out of 80,000 applicants.

But many of these successful examinees did not enroll this school year, Palatino said.

He said the 300 percent tuition hike in UP led to a significant decline in the freshman enrollment in several course offerings. The Office of the Student Regent earlier placed the no-show rate or the number of UPCAT passers who did not enroll at 20 to 40 percent.

Another state school, the Eulogio Amang Rodriguez Institute of Science and Technology (EARIST) in Manila experience a sharp decline in enrollment. Initial enrollment reports show that more than half of the 13,000 strong student population failed to enroll this school year. Only 6,000 enrolled and most of them only made partial payments. The EARIST administration recently increased tuition by almost 600 percent, from 15 pesos per unit to 100 pesos.

The current crisis in tertiary education, Palatino said, should also be blamed on government’s policy of rationalization. The policy allows SUCs to be treated no longer as national agencies performing socially-oriented activities and hence entitled to government subsidy, but as income-earning entities.

“This further translates into incentives for money-making tertiary schools, thereby fully encouraging the commercialization of education.”

“The policy has ensured corporate dominance even in public education,” he said.

The Kabataan Party today said school owners and administrators are raking in bigger profits without actually raising tuition.

The youth group revealed that schools have been jacking up miscellaneous fees in place of annual tuition hikes.

“Schools are foregoing tuition increases but they have been bloating miscellaneous fees which are mostly questionable,” Kabataan Party President Raymond Palatino said.

“Unlike tuition, miscellaneous fee hikes have remained unchecked for the last few years. This explains why school owners are able to avoid tuition hikes but still manage to rake in bigger profits annually,” he added.

He said that such tactic has proven to be very profitable to school owners. Unlike tuition, miscellaneous fee of all sorts are not included in the tuition increase consultations provided under CHED memorandum no. 13 which was recently reimplemented following the lifting of the tuition cap, he said.

Palatino cited energy fee, development fee, accreditation fee, athletics fee, internet fee, insurance fee and aircondition fee as some of the dubious fees being collected in private schools.

“Even disbursements for capital expenditures and operating expenses which supposedly are already included in the basic tuition are being charged to students in the form of other miscellaneous fees like the energy fee and the development fee. Some school administrators claim that the energy fee is for the purchase of new air-conditioning units while the development fee is for the construction of new buildings and improvement of other facilities,” Palatino explained.

“These fees are not only questionable, they are superfluous. School owners are becoming more creative in inventing new fees to justify their lust for profit,” he said.

Palatino quoted former CHED executive director Roger Perez as saying in an interview with a daily broadsheet in 2004 that most tertiary schools were charging various fees that he described as “downright ridiculous,” citing as examples unexplained fees for energy, guidance and counseling, aircon, social action, building and development.
Some of the most absurd fees being collected are the postal fee, insurance fee, Smart fee and copier fee in AMA Computer University; power charge fee in Trinity University of Asia; Land Infrastructure Maintenance and Acquisition Development fee in the University of the Cordilleras; accreditation fee in Technological Institute of the Philippine; and pre-registration fee in Aquinas University in Albay.

The Philippine Maritime Institute is charging students with a Safety on Land and Seas fee worth P5,000 to P6,000 while the University of the East in Manila is charging cultural fee amounting to P162 and Internet fee of P976.

“The Asian School of Arts and Sciences is collecting P250 for athletic fee even if the school doesn’t have a varsity team,” Palatino revealed.

“Unless the government and CHED start to regulate miscellaneous fees, school owners will continue to profit from students and parents through these excessive fees. CHED must also determine the miscellaneous fees which schools can collect,” he said.

Palatino also urged CHED to abolish exorbitant fees being charged by schools and penalize school owners who will continue to impose questionable fees on students.

The Kabataan Party and the National Union of Students of the Philippines (NUSP) today chided the Commission on Higher Education’s (CHED) for its lack of political will to stand up to private school owners and regulate unabated tuition hikes.

“The CHED has been reduced into a mere monitoring agency. Despite formal complaints and protests from students and parents, CHED remains toothless even as to implementing its limp guidelines in holding so-called consultations,” Kabataan Party President Raymond Palatino said.

Palatino added that CHED, for the past years, has miserably failed to implement meaningful and significant reforms in higher education and utterly lacked political will to stand up against abusive private school owners.

He said the higher percentages and increase in the number of tuition increases this school year only confirmed fears that CHED’s last-minute policy change lifting the tuition cap will further make it easier for school owners to impose bigger hikes in tuition and other fees.

“The lifting of the tuition cap only shows the Commission can be quickly maneuvered by private school owners.”

Meanwhile, Palatino urged lawmakers to speed up investigations and review the Education Act of 1982 which students since the 1980’s have been fighting to be scrapped.

“Our lawmakers must act now before it’s too late. College education in the country is in the brink of a breakdown. The first thing our legislators must to do is to scrap the government’s tuition deregulation policy.”

He also called on lawmakers to probe schools which are frequently included in the top 5,000 corporations in the country and freeze planned tuition increases for the coming school year. Among these schools are Centro Escolar University (CEU), Far Eastern University (FEU), Mapua Institute of Technology (MIT), University of the East (UE), AMA Computer University and STI Colleges.

Palatino said Kabataan and NUSP will lead a nationwide protest against tuition and other fee increases on June 13 to mark the opening of classes in various colleges and universities.

The Kabataan Party blamed the flawed tuition system for the worsening problems in tertiary education, saying two decades of tuition deregulation have only resulted to high school fees and a pitiful quality of education.

“The Philippine tuition system has miserably failed and the Commission on Higher Education’s decade of monumental blunder of feigning helplessness towards skyrocketing school fees is largely to be blamed,” Kabataan Party President Raymond Palatino said.

Palatino said it is time for incoming lawmakers and the Philippine government to learn what other countries are doing in order to balance the need to infuse resources in schools and the right of students to affordable college education.

“We need a new tuition regulation mechanism that would have sweeping and radical results in democratizing access to higher education.”

A study made by Kabataan Party and the National Union of Students of the Philippines (NUSP) on the rising cost of tertiary education showed that in just five years, from academic year 2000-2001 to the present, the national average tuition rate has increased by roughly 65 percent. The National Capital Region (NCR) average rate, on the other hand, went up by almost 60 percent.

Based on the Commission on Higher Education’s (CHED) records on tuition increases, tuition was steadily increasing by an average of almost 12 percent for the last five years.

Palatino blamed the Education Act of 1982 for the staggering tuition hikes in the last two decades. “By giving them a free hand in determining tuition rate, the Education Act effectively bestowed private school owners limitless powers,” he said.

Batas Pambansa No. 232, otherwise known as the Education Act of 1982, laid down the guidelines and regulations governing the collection and application of tuition and other fees by all educational institutions. In particular, Section 42 gave private schools a free hand in determining tuition rates thus allowing private schools to increase the fee every school year.

The deregulated environment set by the Act ensured the wholesale commodification of a fast-expanding private tertiary education, Palatino said.

“This was also the reason behind the unexpected collapse of pre-need education firms like the College Assurance Plan (CAP),” Palatino said. “The pre-need education industry’s downfall merely highlights how the cost of education, particularly in the tertiary level, has dramatically increased after the deregulation of tuition.”

From 1990-1995 just before the Asian financial bubble burst in 1997, tuition jumped to 275 percent. For the last 15 years since 1990, tuition has swelled by almost 700 percent.

Kabataan projects that if the average tuition rate increase of 12 percent continues for the next five years, the national average per unit would reach P590.20 by 2010. By then tuition would have increased by as high as 1,257.41 percent since 1990.

“Clearly, the relentless hikes in tuition and other fees have earned for private school owners millions of profits over the last two decades,” Palatino says. “This largely explains why some business tycoons like Lucio Tan and the Yuchengcos are now venturing into tertiary education.”

Most of these schools have consistently landed among the country’s top 1,000 corporations since 1996. By the end of 2003, nine schools were included in this list. Their combined profits amounted to P1.13 billion.

Private schools frequently listed among the top corporations in the country in terms of profit are the Centro Escolar University (CEU), MIT, Far Eastern University (FEU), UE, Philippine Maritime Institute (PMI), Technological Institute of the Philippines (TIP), AMA Computer University and STI College.

Palatino urged lawmakers to repeal the Education Act of 1982. “Our lawmakers must immediately act to stop these tuition and miscellaneous fee increases and put a moratorium on the proposed new round of hikes for the next school year. Unless the government starts to flex its muscles on these increases, we will be seeing a higher drop-out rate and bigger number of out-of-school youth in the next five years.”

Even CHED admits that “unless BP 232 (Education Act of 1982) is repealed or amended, the most viable course for all concerned is to take a close look at where the increases are going.”

“Unless the government reverses its present education policies and its thrust to hand over tertiary education to private sector and until it flexes its muscles to stop the incessant hikes in tuition and other fees, it will certainly bury the confidence, hopes and great faith of the Filipino youth and the nation for a brighter future ahead,” Palatino warned.

The Kabataan Party today called on newly proclaimed Senators to translate their electoral agenda and promises into practice by making the immediate resolution of the current ‘tuition hike crisis’ their top priority in the 14th Congress.

“This will be the best opportunity for them to prove to us that they are really for the youth and they participated in this elections to defend and uphold the interest of young Filipinos, particularly for education,” Kabataan Party President Raymond Palatino said
Palatino said the next Congress should prioritize pending bills that seek to institute much needed reforms in the education sector.

Among the bills awaiting approval are the proposed moratorium on tuition and other fee increases and amendments to the Education Act of 1982 which placed private tertiary education in a deregulated environment.

“It’s high time that Congress starts to flex its muscles on unabated increases in tuition and other fees. Government’s tuition deregulation policy has resulted to skyrocketing tuition and miscellaneous fee hikes and caused the ranks of dropouts and out-of-school youth to swell for the past decade. ”

Palatino particularly emphasized the need to resolve the controversy created by the anomalous suspension of CHED Memorandum Order No. 14 or the guidelines for tuition and other fee increase applications and its subsequent amendments last February.

“We call on the lawmakers to investigate CHED and its officials for committing grave abuse of discretion and violating its own standard operating procedures when it hastily suspended the tuition cap amid ongoing tuition consultations. ”

CHED Chairman Carlito Puno issued the memorandum suspending the tuition cap last February 20 days before the conclusion of regular tuition hike consultations in private colleges and universities.

Kabataan and NUSP earlier accused CHED of conspiring with the Coordinating Council of Private Educational Associations (COCOPEA) to lift the tuition cap to allow private school owners to increase tuition beyond the inflation rate.

Palatino also urged the elected Senators to investigate schools which are charging dubious and excessive fees to students.

In 2003 alone, nine schools landed among the top 1,000 corporations in the country with a combined profit of P1.23 billion, he said, citing data from the Securities and Exchange Commission.

“How was it possible for big private schools to rake in millions in profit while CHED’s guidelines only provide a 10 percent return of investment for imposed fee increases? School owners have certainly made a lucrative business out of tertiary education and CHED appears to be a willing accomplice.”

Meanwhile, Palatino said the next Congress should also conduct a comprehensive review of existing education policies similar to the Education Commission of 1992.

“The recurring problems hounding the education sector should prompt lawmakers and education officials to assess the effectiveness and viability of existing policies and formulate new policies that are responsive to the needs of students, the academe and the local economy in general.”

Poor training, Low Salary Keep Education Grads from Teaching

The country has enough of Teacher Education graduates to plug the growing teacher-student gap but many of them fail to pass the licensure exam due to raw training and more opt to go abroad – or stay in the country – to work as housemaids.

“Every school year, more than 400,000 college hopefuls aspire to become teachers. Practically almost all tertiary or college level institutions in the country offer a degree in Teacher Education. Yet the country lacks roughly some 50,000 teachers,” Kabataan Party Vice President Carl Marc Ramota said.

“Only a fraction among the thousands who flock to Teacher Education are able to attain their dream profession. Specifically, only a little more than 100,000 education students reach the fourth year,” he said, citing the data from the Professional Regulation Commission.

“And of the more than 100,000 who graduate, only a few pass the licensure exams,” Ramota said, citing the poor performance of Education graduates in the 2006 Licensure Examinations for Teachers.

Only 17,377 out of 59,457 or a measly 29.23 percent of the examinees passed the exams for elementary education while 32.44 percent or 17,290 out of 53,303 examinees passed the test for secondary education in the August 2006 Licensure Examinations for Teachers (LET).

“The poor performance of our graduates in professional examinations is only reflective of the dismal state of our education system,” Ramota pointed out.

“Many Teacher Education institutions are producing half-baked graduates who add up to the bulk of LET non-passers and unemployed or underemployed teachers,” he said.

“Even these schools are now being turned into mere for-profit diploma mills rather than as training ground for future mentors.”

Ramota said many of those who manage to pass the LET eventually abandon their profession in favor of jobs that are available here or abroad.

“Sadly, of the current crop of teachers, the best and the brightest are now teaching abroad. Many of them are also leaving to work as domestics in other countries,” he added.

“The employment crisis, low salary and unrealistic professional regulation policies continue to plague the education profession.”
Since 2001, the salaries of government employees, which include teachers, have been frozen. The last salary increases were given in 2000, a 10 percent increase (P440) and five percent in 2001 (P242).

A teacher’s starting salary is only P9,939 a month, a little higher than the minimum wage in Metro Manila. Independent think-tank Ibon Foundation pegged the monthly cost of living in the National Capital Region at P20,454.61 or a difference of P10,515.61.

“We can’t blame our teachers for leaving the country or for working as housemaids. Whatever salary they receive does not correspond to their load of work,” he said.

A study released by the International Labor Organization (ILO) and the United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization (UNESCO) also show that teachers in the Philippines work an average of 1,176 hours per year and teach classes of over 50 students.

Ramota warned the country will see more classrooms with no teachers in the next years if the government and the Education department fail to arrest this alarming trend.

He feared that the problem in the shortage of teachers and poor performance in LET may lead to further decline in educational standards.

All of these, he said, send a distressing signal to the education sector. “We could only imagine what kind of students we are producing if their teachers are not adequately equipped with the appropriate skills.”