Lawmakers defend free tuition for college students amid sustainability concerns

MANILA, Philippines — Doubts raised by Finance Chief Benjamin Diokno on the long-term viability of the free college education program have prompted lawmakers to defend the policy, citing clear gains in the six-year law’s effects on increasing access to tertiary schooling.

This came after Diokno, who led the creation of the implementing rules and regulations of the free tertiary education law in 2017, said that the program was “unsustainable” and “consumes a lot of funds" during a seminar, according to a BusinessWorld report.

Republic Act 10931 or the free education law is touted as one of the legacies of the Duterte administration, which Diokno served under as budget secretary. Even in 2017, however, Diokno, had expressed doubts over the long-term sustainability of the free tuition law.

Diokno also tagged the free tuition law as “anti-poor” for disproportionately benefiting wealthier students who compete with disadvantaged students for limited slots.

Two House lawmakers — one part of the majority bloc and another part of the minority — defended the free college education program and stressed its impact on helping marginalized students.

Minority lawmaker Rep. Raoul Manuel (Kabataan Party-list) stressed that accessible education should remain a right and a priority of the current administration despite its costs.

Kabataan Partylist was a co-author of one of the bills that eventually became RA 10931.

"Education is a right and has never been merely an 'investment' or a privilege given only to the deserving. If we want to provide more young people with the opportunity to study in our SUCs, we have many possible sustainable sources of funding for this," Manuel said in Filipino.

Rep. Rufus Rodriguez (Cagayan de Oro, 2nd District) similarly opposed Diokno’s suggestion of scrapping the program.

“I am against the proposal to stop the program because it benefits many poor but deserving high school graduates who cannot otherwise pursue college education without government financial assistance,” Rodriguez said.

“Congress can and should continue to fund it. Education is the best gift we can give to the poor,” the lawmaker added.

In response to Diokno’s remarks that free college education merely subsidizes the schooling of wealthy students, Rodriguez called on the Commission on Higher Education and state and local universities and colleges to “strictly vet students applying for the free college education program to ensure that only those qualified get assistance.”

CHED Chairperson Popoy De Vera said in an EDCOM II hearing that since the passage of RA 10931, more students from “relatively higher income households” are now enrolling in state colleges and universities (SUCs).

With more applicants vying for a spot, De Vera said the acceptance rate in SUCs has dropped below 50%, and those who ace the admission tests are those who typically have the funds for review classes.