Metro Manila (CNN Philippines, June 21) — Public elementary and high schools will receive additional funds to ensure compliance with government’s minimum health standards.
In an online press conference on Monday, the Department of Education said it would allocate some ₱3.7 billion for the additional Maintenance and Other Operating Expenses (MOOE) budget.
The bulk, or over ₱3.5 billion, will go to almost 45,000 public schools while the DepEd central, regional, and division offices will get the remaining amount.
Like in other establishments, public schools are also required to conduct temperature checks by the gates and place alcohol dispensers in rooms, among other health standards.
“Binibili po natin ng mga supplies ang ating mga eskwelahan para ang mga teachers at non-teaching positions na pumapasok ay meron din pong protection. Kahit wala yung mga bata sa eskwelahan, nag-ooperate ang mga eskwelahan because the teachers are doing their alternative work arrangement in the school,” DepEd Undersecretary Anna Sevilla said.
[Translation: We buy supplies for the schools so that teachers and those with non-teaching positions who go to work are protected. Even if there are no students, schools are operating because the teachers are doing their alternative work arrangement in the school.]
Early release of ₱5,000 cash allowance
All public school teachers will receive in advance their annual ₱5,000 cash allowance for the next school year. The current school year will end next month.
Over ₱4.4 billion has been allocated to provide a ₱5,000 cash allowance to 886,829 public school teachers.
“Lahat ng mga guro natin ngayon kahit hindi pa nagsisimula ‘yung school year ay eligible at kung sa pagbukas ng school year may dadating na bagong teacher ay magkakaroon ng pro-rated na mga cash allowance na pwedeng ibigay sa kanila,” Sevilla explained.
[Translation: All teachers, even if the school year has not started, are eligible and if the school year has started and new teachers arrive, there will be a pro-rated cash allowance for them.]
The DepEd also said it has completed the release of performance-based allowances to teachers and personnel for SY 2019.
Teachers have been demanding for the issuance of their performance-based bonus for the past two years.
Meantime, the DepEd said the number of public schools approved for pilot testing of limited face-to-face classes has been narrowed down to 300.
The DepEd initially submitted almost 2,000 schools to be assessed for the pilot test.
But it will be up to President Rodrigo Duterte if it will be allowed in the next school year.
“It depends on the assessment of the IATF and Department of Health because as you know, a few months back, the President already agreed to the pilot studies, but then the UK (Alpha) variant came. Now, we have to deal with the Delta variant and so this development has to be seriously considered as well,” DepEd Secretary Leonor Briones said.
