Bu-lat-lat (boo-lat-lat) verb: to search, probe, investigate, inquire; to unearth facts Vol. IV, No. 29 August 22 - 28, 2004 Quezon City, Philippines |
ANALYSIS
GMA’s
‘Education for All’: An Empty Rhetoric? In
her various policy pronouncements, President Gloria Macapagal-Arroyo has
repeatedly promoted her “education for all” program.
A look at the proposed budget for 2005 drafted by the Department of
Budget and Management (DBM), however, shows that this program is nothing
but an empty rhetoric. BY
RONALYN V. OLEA President Gloria Macapagal-Arroyo (GMA) has promised a lot
to develop the country’s educational system, but the government’s
subsidy to education can hardly be called an improvement compared to the
previous years. For 2005, the Department of Budget and Management (DBM)
proposed to give the Department of Education (DepEd) P111.04 billion
($1.99 billion, based on an exchange rate of P55.72 per US dollar). This
accounts for 11.68 percent of P951-billion ($17.07 billion) national
budget for 2005. The education budget is a pittance, however, if one were to
analyze Macapagal-Arroyo’s promises on education. Scholar
for every poor family In the past, Macapagal-Arroyo repeatedly vowed to adopt one
scholar from every poor family. According to the Wallace Report, a study by the business community
released last June, there are 1.7 million children aged 7 to 12 who are
not in school because of poverty. To
send them to school even for just one year, the government needs P13.6
billion to P17 billion ($244.08 million to $305.10 million). The
computation is based on estimates by the Alliance
of Concerned Teachers (ACT) that one year of schooling amounts to P8,000
to P10,000 ($143.58 to $179.47). Macapagal-Arroyo
said that based on the records of the Philippine Health Insurance
Corporation (PhilHealth), there are about seven
million poor PhilHealth cardholders.
Based on ACT’s estimates, sending seven million poor
children to school will cost P56 billion to P70 billion ($1 billion to
$1.26 billion). This already accounts for more than half of the proposed
education budget. Her
Student Assistance Fund for Education for a Strong Republic (Safe 4 SR)
aims to provide easy-to-pay loans for third-year
and fourth-year college students. This, the President said, would
enable students to graduate. The
Wallace Report revealed that the drop-out rate in college is 73 percent. In the proposed budget for 2005, the government will
allot P92.8 million ($1.66 million) for 58,085 students in tertiary and
vocational levels. Based on
data from the Commission on Higher Education (CHED), the beneficiaries
comprise only 1.82 percent of the total college population of 3.2 million.
SUC
budget Meanwhile,
the proposed budget for state universities and colleges (SUCs) is only
P16.85 billion ($302.40 million). In 2003, the budget alloted for SUCs was
P17.07 billion ($306.35 million). Ironically,
the state’s premier university will suffer the biggest reduction. The
University of the Philippines System’s budget will be cut by almost P67
million ($1.20 million). From
this year’s P4.52 billion ($81.12 million), UP may only get P4.45 billion ($79.86 million) next year. The
subsidy of 30 more SUCs will decrease. The Mindanao State University (MSU)
may get P14.74 million ($264,536.97) less than its current budget. Around
P8.44 million ($151,471.64) could be slashed from Romblon State
College’s subsidy. The
Polytechnic University of the Philippines (PUP), which has 11 branches,
may have to do with P545.34
million ($9.79 million) next year, a decrease by around P2.6 million
($46,661.88) compared to this year. Part of cost-cutting measures is scheme to merge state
colleges. This year, the government subsidizes 111 SUCs. The subsidy will
be reduced to only 85 SUCs under the proposed budget for 2005. In Nueva Vizcaya, for instance, two state colleges will
receive no subsidy. This is because the two colleges – the Nueva Vizcaya
State Institute of Technology and Nueva Viscaya State Polytechnic College
- will merge to become the Nueva Vizcaya State University. Addressing
classroom shortage
The
Macapagal-Arroyo administration is set to allot P3.2 billion ($57.43
million) for the construction of 8,000 classrooms (based on official
estimates that P1 billion or $17.95 million can construct 2,500
classrooms). This will reportedly reduce the classroom shortage by 20.31
percent. It may be recalled that DepEd
records show a shortage of 39,383 classrooms this school year.
Reducing
the shortage in classrooms will not automatically reduce the class size to
the ideal 25, however. Today, the actual class size in public schools is
60 to 110. This pales in comparison to Thailand (18), Malaysia (19), China
(24), Taiwan (14), and Indonesia (22). Facilities Macapagal-Arroyo
also pledged to improve school facilities and provide computers to all schools. The
DepEd said 20 percent of classrooms have no proper ventilation, 27 percent
have no lighting, 55 percent do not have electricity and 25 percent have
no ceilings. It also added that in 2002, 22 percent of elementary and
secondary schools did not have science laboratories. However,
the DBM proposed to allot only P2.42 billion ($43.43 million) for
DepEd’s capital outlay. Teachers The
Macapagal-Arroyo administration plans to allocate P1.11 billion ($19.92
million) for 10,000 additional teaching and related positions.
This will reportedly reduce the shortage of teachers by 30 percent. However,
based on the current figures, the budget could only address 20.32 percent
of the shortage of teachers given that the DepEd said it lacks 49,212
teachers for the current school year. The
proposed 2005 budget is silent on any increase in the teachers’ salary. A
teacher’s salary is only P9,939 ($178.37) a month, a little higher than
the minimum wage in Metro Manila. Again, this is not enough for the basic
needs of the teachers and their families. In Metro Manila, the daily
family living wage – the amount needed to fulfill the needs of a family
of six - in February 2004 was pegged at P594 daily ($10.66) or P17,820
monthly ($319.81). Because
of low pay, teachers are forced to borrow money. The average loan of every
teacher is P50,109 ($899.30), according to reports. The combined loans of
teachers to the Government Service Insurance System (GSIS) have already
reached P15 billion ($269.20 million). Real
priorities Meanwhile, debt servicing will eat up P301.69 billion
($5.41 billion) or 31.72 percent of the national budget. The amount is 272
percent higher than the education budget. Moreover, the proposed allocation for Department of
Interior and Local Government (DILG) and Department of National Defense (DND)
is higher than this year’s. The
combined allotment for the two departments may amount to P90 billion
($1.61 billion) next year, much higher than the proposed budget for SUCs. Indeed, the youth can see through the deception of Macapagal-Arroyo’s rhetoric. Based on the proposed education budget, the promise of “education for all” is nothing but an empty rhetoric. Bulatlat We want to know what you think of this article.
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