ACT hits Marcos’ slow action in solving classroom shortage

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February 13, 2026 | 12:00am

MANILA, Philippines — The Alliance of Concerned Teachers (ACT) yesterday questioned why it took President Marcos almost four years before prioritizing the classroom shortage problem.

“It is a decades-old issue. The classroom shortage did not suddenly appear, and neither is it a mystery. What is alarming is that it has taken years into this administration before declaring education as a priority, while teachers and learners have long endured overcrowded and unsafe classrooms,” ACT chairperson Ruby Bernardo said. “Inaction has defined most of his administration.”

Bernardo made the remarks after the President on Wednesday vowed to address the classroom shortage.

Marcos announced that the government has allocated P9.6 billion for the construction of 4,000 classrooms nationwide, with the local governments taking the lead in building new learning spaces.

Of the amount, P4.1 billion will be used to build 1,200 classrooms by provincial governments. More than P5 billion will fund the delivery of 2,800 prefabricated classrooms by the Department of Education.

The Second Congressional Commission on Education has warned that the classroom shortage of 165,443 could worsen as around 51,000 classrooms are projected to be condemned by 2028.

“How did we let this happen? Teachers do not need to be patronized with expressions of disbelief when we have been raising these problems all along,” Bernardo said.