Solon bats for creation of municipal committee on education

Saying despite the implementation of free education among the youth, a lot of deserving students have not been able to gain access to quality education due to the lack of complimentary financial support, a party-list lawmaker is pushing for the creation of a municipal committee on education in every town all over the country.

In a telephone interview, Banat party-list Rep. Salvador Britanico told the Tribune he had filed House Bil 6849, which seeks to constitute a body that would ensure deserving students be given access to financial support to pursue their education.

“Despite the fact that free elementary and high school education have been implemented and that public schools and colleges have been created in order to give access to quality education to our youth, many promising young men and women in many barangays (villages) are not able to avail of education for lack of financial capability to shoulder the various incidental expenses,” Britanico said.

“One reason for this is that the distribution of financial support for students is centralized in Manila,” he noted.

Britanico said with his bill, every deserving student in the country would be given equal opportunity to have access to government financial support to pursue his education.

Through his bill, the lawmaker is proposing that the committee be composed of the principal of the national high school in the municipality as its chairman, principals of the other high schools, district supervisor, principals of elementary schools, chairman of the Sangguniang Bayan for Education, the president of the Federation of Barangay Chairmen, the president of the high school alumni association and the president of the Parent-Teachers Association.

Britanico is seeking an initial funding of P500,000 annually for each municipality. –Charlie V. Manalo, Daily Tribune