Education not prioritized in 2025 budget – Lacson, Makabayan bloc

LESSON FOR THE DAY A teacher at General Roxas Elementary School in Quezon City prepares her students for the
day’s lessons in this photo taken in February 2024. INQUIRER file photo / GRIG C. MONTEGRANDE

MANILA, Philippines — The recently signed 2025 national budget did not prioritize the education sector despite the removal of P194-billion line items, former senator Panfilo Lacson and lawmakers from the Makabayan bloc said on Monday.

In a statement posted on his website, Lacson said that despite President Ferdinand Marcos Jr. vetoing P26.06 billion from P288-billion congressional insertions, education was not given priority in crafting the 2025 General Appropriations Act.

Lacson stressed that this goes against the 1987 Constitution, specifically Section 5, paragraph 5 of Article XIV, which requires the government to “assign the highest budgetary priority to education.”

“Having vetoed only P26.065B from the P288B ‘congressional insertions,’ mostly in the bicameral conference, the budget for education is still not ‘assigned the highest budgetary priority’ contrary to Article XIV Sec 5(5) of the 1987 Constitution,” he noted.

“That being said, Malacañang may already be preparing for any constitutional challenge that may arise from this – both before the Supreme Court and the court of public opinion,” he added.

Marcos on Monday signed the 2025 budget, which went down from the P6.352-trillion General Appropriations Bill to just P6.326 due to the veto of P194-billion line items deemed inconsistent with the administration’s priority programs.

READ: Marcos signs P6.3 trillion 2025 national budget, vetoes P194 billion

These include around P26 billion worth of programs and projects under the Department of Public Works and Highways (DPWH), and P168-billion unprogrammed funds.

“While the final version of the budget reflects many of our shared priorities, some provisions required careful scrutiny. The Filipino people have spoken: every centavo must go to programs that truly uplift lives, strengthen communities, secure the future development of the Philippines,” Marcos said.

However, ACT Teachers party-list Rep. France Castro and lawmaker Antonio Tinio believe that Marcos’ veto was just a “deceptive maneuver to create an illusion of constitutional compliance.”

“This veto message is pure deception. The veto of P194 billion for DPWH projects is just an attempt to distract us, to make it seem that the budget is constitutional because a bigger chunk is given to the education sector.  But the truth is, they did not return the funds removed from the education sector,” Castro said in Filipino.

“This is just a big disguise. The administration is trying to fool the public by vetoing certain DPWH projects while keeping the deep cuts to essential education programs. This veto cannot change the anti-education and anti-poor character of the 2025 budget,” he added.

Last December 12, Castro called out the bicam for approving a P12-billion cut in the Department of Education’s (DepEd) proposed 2025 budget, which would hit the agency’s computerization program.

Education Secretary Sonny Angara also complained about the budget cut, but he eventually said Marcos vowed to address the issue.

READ: Angara: Marcos to remedy huge DepEd budget cut

Lawmakers from the House of Representatives’ majority bloc, however, defended the DepEd budget cuts made by the bicam.

According to Zambales 1st District Rep. Jefferson Khonghun, DepEd should show that it can efficiently use its funds before Congress makes a higher allocation for its computerization program.

Khonghun also disputed allegations that the DPWH had a higher budget, noting that the bicam allocated a total of P1.055 trillion to the education sector, which includes DepEd, the Commission on Higher Education,  State Universities and Colleges, the Technical Education and Skills Development Authority, and other government-owned educational institutions.

He also noted that while DPWH has P1.235 trillion, P82.08 billion of its funds are convergence projects, which means that while these are infrastructure programs, it is intended for the projects of other departments like DepEd (classrooms and other facilities) and the Department of Health.

This would leave DPWH with P1.033 trillion — slightly lower than the entire education sector.

READ: Education budget for 2025 still higher than DPWH fund – lawmaker

Still, Castro and Tinio believe that the 2025 GAA falls below the United Nations (UN) standard in terms of allocating 6 percent of a country’s gross domestic product (GDP) to the education sector.

“The education budget should have been set at 6% of GDP from the start to meet UN standards.  Instead, Congress reduced it, and it was not placed back with whatever veto made by Marcos,” Castro said.

“This budget and these vetoes reveal the administration’s true priorities – maintaining huge allocations for infrastructure and military spending while shortchanging education.  Vetoing the DPWH projects is just for show if they cannot put back what was removed from the education sector,” Tinio added.