Metro Manila (CNN Philippines, October 11)— Schools in areas considered at low risk for COVID-19 should be granted the authority to decide whether or not to reopen for in-person classes, Senate Minority Leader Franklin Drilon suggested on Wednesday.
Drilon made the statement on the first day of the Senate’s plenary debates on the proposed ₱5.024 trillion national budget for 2022.
Under the latest version of the budget bill, some ₱3.6 billion is allocated for the anticipated expansion of face-to-face classes for both basic and higher education next year, Senate finance committee chairman Sonny Angara said.
During the session, Drilon pushed to “incentivize” the resumption of face-to-face classes. He said he will further discuss this proposal when the senators zero in on the budget for the education sector.
“Shouldn’t we give leeway and discretion to the school authorities, SUCs (state universities and colleges), board of regents, to reopen classes subject to the compliance with certain conditions and we’ll incentivize them through giving access to these budgeted items?” Drilon said.
“Example, if the locality has an alert level of 1 shouldn’t we give discretion and authority to the education officials in that locality to open classes? With appropriate safeguards,” Drilon said.
Health Secretary Francisco Duque III earlier said Metro Manila can further ease to Alert Level 1 if COVID-19 cases continue to drop.
With the capital region under Alert Level 2, senators are asking why the government has not reopened schools when children are already allowed to go to malls and other public spaces.
“Because I am concerned that our children are already deprived of two years of actual classroom experience and on the other hand our support for the needs of our students on a virtual education system is very pathetic,” Drilon said.
“My frustration is we happily rejoice, people are out in the malls but no one’s going to schools,” said Senator Pia Cayetano, vice chairperson of the Senate finance committee.
Angara said vaccine czar Carlito Galvez, Jr. agrees with the senators and has committed to raise their concerns with the COVID-19 inter-agency task force, which meets with President Rodrigo Duterte regularly.
The President has so far authorized a pilot run of basic education face-to-face classes in only 120 schools. The Commission on Higher Education is also gearing up for limited in-person classes subject to certain conditions, including the vaccination of students and school personnel and retrofitting of classrooms.
