Press Release - Manifestation of Senator Christopher “Bong” Go during the Senate plenary deliberation for the budget of the Department of Education

Mr. President, my honorable colleagues and, of course, the Department of Education officials led by Vice President Sara Duterte, magandang araw po sa inyong lahat.

First, I want to express my support for the budget of the Department of Education. And I would also like to congratulate the Vice President and the DepEd for launching the MATATAG Curriculum: 'Bansang Makabata, Batang Makabansa' agenda.

This program definitely marks a crucial moment in our nation's educational landscape, and I believe it will play a crucial role in addressing the challenges that we face in our education system. The MATATAG program is truly a testament to the visionary leadership of the Vice President and the Secretary of the Department of Education.

With this, Mr. President, I would also like to express my support for the increase in the budget of basic education facilities which was allotted with an additional of P10 billion or a 44% increase from this year's allocation.

Importante po ito para matugunan ang kakulangan sa mga classroom lalo na ngayong balik face-to-face na po ang mga estudyante at ang mga guro. Marapat lamang po na mabigyang pansin at solusyon ang problemang kinakaharap ng ating mga estudyante dahil sa kanila nakasalalay ang kinabukasan ng ating bansa.

As discussed in the committee hearings, there is a total of 159,000 classrooms that must be constructed all over the country to bridge the classroom gap. In fact, sa pag-iikot ko po sa buong bansa, halos inilalapit po sa atin ng mga teachers, kulang ang kanilang classrooms lalung-lalo na po sa liblib na komunidad, marami pong nagpapatulong sa atin at inilalapit naman natin ito sa departamento.

Napansin ko rin po na may mga eskwelahan pa rin na hindi maganda ang kondisyon, sira-sira ang bubong o yero pa rin ang bubong, hindi maayos ang mga silid-aralan, maruruming palikuran, kahoy na pundasyon, at marami pang iba. Iyon po ang hinaing ng mga teachers natin.

In fact, noong bumoto po ako noong last barangay election, mismo po sa siyudad kung saan po ang ating Vice President mula sa Davao City, marami pang mga sementado na na mga classroom pero marami pang naiiwan na mga classroom na kahoy po ang bubong, sira-sira ang yero.