Sen. Bam Aquino has urged President Ferdinand Marcos Jr. to certify as urgent the proposed bill titled Classroom-Building Acceleration Program (CAP) Act, saying it’s a solution to the country’s classroom backlog.
Aquino issued the call after Public Works Secretary Vince Dizon earlier said that only 22 classrooms were built this year by the DPWH out of the 1,700 targeted for completion.
The senator, author of Senate Bill No. 121, or the CAP Act, said the DPWH clearly cannot address the problem alone.
‘All of us were really surprised. Our backlog is 145,000 above. That’s why these 22 classrooms built by the DPWH are really not acceptable,’ said Aquino, chair of the Senate Committee on Basic Education.
While the measure has already been identified as one of the administration’s priority measures in the 20th Congress, Aquino said the president should take the next step by certifying the bill as urgent to ensure its swift passage.
If passed into law, Aquino said the bill will complement the chief executive’s directive to channel funds directly to local government units (LGUs) to help expedite the construction of much-needed classrooms.
The senator’s proposed measure aims to decentralize classroom construction by expanding the mandate beyond DPWH to include LGUs and non-government organizations with a proven track record.
Under the bill, LGUs and NGOs can then build classrooms in compliance with the Department of Education’s standards and guidelines within their jurisdictions.