San Rafael, Bulacan Public School | Photo via Wikimedia Commons
The recent joint study by the Philippine Second Congressional Commission for Education (EdCom 2) and the Philippine Institute of Development Studies stated that Metro Manila, Calabarzon, Soccsksargen, and the Bangsamoro Autonomous Region in Muslim Mindanao (BARMM) face “severe and persistent challenges” due to classroom shortages and aging school buildings.
In the National Capital Region (NCR), as much as 90 percent of public elementary school students in the northern district were enrolled in congested schools with a ratio of 50 students per classroom. In the southern district, 76.8 percent of students were in similarly crowded classrooms, and in the eastern district, 60.1 percent were in equally overcrowded classrooms. Similarly, in the provinces of Rizal and Cavite, congestion was a problem. Classroom shortages affected elementary students the most, followed by junior high and senior high school students.
As a result, student-classroom ratios are projected to remain the highest in the NCR and surrounding provinces for both elementary and secondary schools over the next 15 years, until 2040, as well as in Cebu, Occidental Mindoro, BARMM, and Soccsksargen. A significant number of public school rooms are beyond their estimated useful life, with projections showing that only 18.6 percent of 2023 public school rooms will remain in good condition by 2040 without new construction or repairs.
Every election season in the Philippines ushers in a familiar chorus: candidates proudly vowing to build more public schools, hospitals, health centers, and other essential facilities. At first glance, these promises appear to offer hope. What kind of leader wouldn’t want accessible education and affordable health care for all? But beneath this benevolent veneer lies a troubling implication—that these services will be more needed than ever because poverty will persist or even worsen.
Filipinos who attend campaign rallies typically hear a litany of promises centered on social services rather than job-creating initiatives. Sadly, Filipino voters jump up and down, clapping and cheering each promise—a promise of more poverty. Imagine politicians promising to even try to reduce social services, given the current voter mindset, that would guarantee defeat at the polls.
Political platforms that emphasize the expansion of basic services are necessary, yes, but they can also be defeatist. Rather than aiming to eliminate the conditions that drive chronic demand for such services, many candidates accept poverty as a permanent backdrop. Campaigns rarely focus on helping people overcome their dependence on these programs. Instead, they double down on providing more of them, inadvertently reinforcing a vision where the poor remain poor and the system keeps patching holes rather than rebuilding the dam.
“Filipinos who attend campaign rallies typically hear a litany of promises centered on social services rather than job-creating initiatives. Sadly, Filipino voters jump up and down, clapping and cheering each promise—a promise of more poverty.”
One cannot help but wonder: where are the proposals for meaningful job creation, aggressive support for small and local enterprises, or reforms in land use and taxation? These are the kinds of promises that focus on long-term transformation, not just survival. Instead, election pledges often frame social services as an endpoint, not a safety net en route to a stronger middle class.
There is nothing inherently wrong with expanding public services. A well-run system of schools and health centers is foundational to a fair society. But voters must also press for deeper answers: What will reduce the need for emergency relief in the first place? What will shrink the number of children who need to rely solely on public schools because their families are trapped in cycles of poverty?
Until those questions are asked and answered, campaign promises risk sounding less like progress and more like a solemn admission that the system is not expected to change.
—————————————–
ABOUT THE AUTHOR: Dr. Crispin Fernandez advocates for overseas Filipinos, public health, transformative political change, and patriotic economics. He is also a community organizer, leader, and freelance writer.
