Bam urges Marcos: Certify classroom bill as urgent

Senator Bam Aquino called on President Ferdinand Marcos Jr. to certify as urgent the Classroom-Building Acceleration Program (CAP) Act, which seeks to solve the country’s classroom shortage.

Aquino, author of Senate Bill No. 121, said the DPWH cannot address the problem alone, noting that the agency has completed only 22 of its 1,700 target classrooms for 2025 despite a backlog of over 145,000.

“Ang backlog natin 145,000 pataas kaya iyong 22 na paggawa ng DPWH, hindi po talaga iyan katanggap-tanggap,” said Aquino, chair of the Senate Committee on Basic Education.

The proposed CAP Act allows local government units and qualified NGOs to build classrooms following DepEd standards, decentralizing the work from DPWH.

Aquino said certifying the bill as urgent would align with the President’s directive to channel funds directly to LGUs. 

“Sabay-sabay po tayong gagawa ng mga classroom para sa ating mga kabataan,” he added.

DPWH Secretary Vince Dizon backed the measure, admitting that at the current pace, the agency cannot meet the demand. 

“We are in full support of this measure, especially now na dalawampu’t dalawa pa lang ang nagagawa ng departamento ngayong taon. Kailangan po talaga natin ang tulong,” said Dizon.IMT