Quezon town mayor slams slow P67-B classroom construction program

Infanta town Mayor Arnel Ruanto has criticized the slow implementation of the Department of Education’s classroom construction program, with students and teachers in his municipality enduring unsafe and inadequate learning conditions. Contributed Photo of Infanta classroom LUCENA CITY – Infanta town Mayor Arnel Ruanto has criticized the slow implementation of the Department of Education’s classroom construction program, saying students and teachers in his municipality continue to endure unsafe and inadequate learning conditions despite the record education budget allocated this year. “Like millions of parents and students, I cannot help but wonder: Why is the implementation so slow? In my hometown of Infanta (in Quezon province), not a single classroom has yet been built by the Department of Education,” Ruanto said in a Facebook post in Filipino on Wednesday. Infanta currently hosts 22 public grade schools and high schools, according to the DepEd website. READ: Bad classroom, broken dreams Article continues after this advertisement The mayor said it pains him to visit public schools that still rely on makeshift classrooms. “Many of these structures are locally called ‘banlat’ or ‘pig pens’ because of their poor condition. During extremely hot days, students have to sit inside classrooms holding umbrellas to shield themselves from the scorching heat,” Ruanto said. “When it rains, they continue their lessons while getting soaked, again using umbrellas inside the classroom,” he added. Ruanto also said some classrooms designed for a single class have been divided into two using only plywood partitions. “We cannot keep asking our students and teachers to wait indefinitely for a solution,” he said. According to the mayor, Infanta has a backlog of more than 100 classrooms, excluding school buildings that have already been condemned or are awaiting demolition for being unsafe. Article continues after this advertisement “We need to know why this situation has persisted. Amid the extreme heat brought by the recent weather conditions, our students and teachers should no longer be forced to hold classes in makeshift shelters—or worse, under the shade of trees because there are no safe classrooms available,” he said. This coastal municipality in northern Quezon has recorded dangerous heat index levels in recent weeks. Article continues after this advertisement Ruanto pointed out that the government allocated P1.015 trillion for education this year—the largest in Philippine history—including P67 billion earmarked for classroom construction. READ: DepEd boosts oversight as 168 LGUs push classroom construction projects “Puzzling and disappointing,” the mayor said in describing the continued delays. “I know many capable and committed people in DepEd—from the Secretary and Undersecretaries to the Assistant Secretaries, Directors, and countless personnel—who have worked tirelessly to improve our education system,” he said. Ruanto said the municipality’s Special Education Fund (SEF) amounts to only P4 million, enough to construct just one classroom based on DepEd’s standard cost estimates. Despite limited resources, he said the local government has pursued alternative solutions through a “construction-by-administration” approach, allowing the municipality to build classrooms without hiring private contractors and significantly reducing construction costs. With assistance from private donors who contributed funds, construction materials, and skilled labor, the municipal government built a classroom at Dinahican Elementary School for only P1.5 million. The local government also improved five classrooms at Binulasan Integrated School and Tongohin Elementary School at a total cost of about P1.5 million. In addition, the town launched the “Adopt-a-Classroom Challenge,” encouraging municipal offices, national government agencies based in Infanta, and members of the people’s council to adopt and rehabilitate one classroom each. “While these are modest initiatives, they embody the spirit of bayanihan for education and help ease the daily burden faced by our teachers and students,” Ruanto said. The mayor acknowledged that local efforts alone cannot address the town’s classroom shortage. “DepEd has funding under the General Appropriations Act. That is why I, together with the people of Infanta, support Senator Bam Aquino’s legislative inquiry into the slow implementation of classroom construction,” he said. Your subscription could not be saved. Please try again. Your subscription has been successful. Last week, Sen. Bam Aquino announced that the Senate Committee on Basic Education would investigate the implementation of the P67-billion Classroom Acceleration Program funded under the 2026 national budget to construct 25,000 classrooms nationwide. /coa