Protesters close down state schools

THE students and faculty of the University of the Philippines walked out of their classes Thursday to protest more than P1 billion in cuts on the budget of 112 state universities and colleges.

Reports said the protests disrupted classes in UP Diliman, UP Manila and the Polytechnic University of the Philippines.

Wearing red T-shirts and red and white arm bands, the protesters sat in front of the Oblation at the UP Manila campus on Padre Faura Street and covered the statue with a black cloth. A banner read: “UP-PGH [Philippine General Hospital] Manila is on strike against budget cuts.”

They held a “sleep-in” protest later in the evening and vowed to continue their rally until today.

In Manila, the protesters marched on the PGH, where they denounced a looming cut in the annual budget of the state-owned tertiary hospital.

Some 3,000 students from UP Dilliman in Quezon City also walked out of their classrooms to join the rally.

Other colleges and universities such as the Polytechnic University of the Philippines, the Philippine Normal University, the Eulogio Amang Rodriguez Institute of Technology, and the Rizal Technological University also joined the protest actions.

The Philippine Association of State Universities and Colleges said campus-wide protests would urge the government to increase their operating budgets and set aside funds for capital investment instead of reducing their subsidies.

Professor Carl Ramota of the UP Manila’s Department of Social Sciences said some 4,000 students and about 200 faculty members, as well as all employees and administration personnel, joined the protest.

He said classes and other school operations were suspended the whole day due to the rally.

Senator Alan Peter Cayetano, who joined the protest around 3:00 p.m., urged the Senate to oppose the budget cuts. –Macon Ramos-Araneta, Manila Standard Today