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DepED allocates P5M more to build schools in Bohol
By JUNE S. BLANCO
Published: December 31, 2006 by The Bohol Standard

BOHOL will be building at least 33 more classrooms next year.

This after the Department of Education (DepED) will release P5 million to the provincial government as counterpart for the project, on top of its regular allocation..

“Aside from the P5 million counterpart, Sec. Jesli Lapuz also agreed that the provincial government will implement the projects due to cost considerations,” said Gov. Erico Aumentado.

The governor leveraged the P5 million from the province’s 20% Development Fund allocated for the purpose to get the DepED counterpart, hence the P10-million fund available for the project.

He also proposed that the province implement the projects to save on cost.

“The province can build a classroom already for only P300,000 compared to the minimum P533,724.06 per classroom costing of the DPWH [Department of Public Works and Highways] and DepED,” he said.

In his letter to Aumentado, Lapuz said the P5-million counterpart will come from DepED’s 10% Unallocated Portion of the School Building Program.

Aumentado and Lapuz will sign shortly a Memorandum of Agreement (MOA) for the implementation of the project.

For record purposes, Lapuz also sought from Aumentado a listing of the priority schools to benefit from the project, as well as the actual works to be done – for reference.

The governor provided Lapuz with the list during his latest trip to Manila . He arrived yesterday afternoon.

The shortage

Meanwhile, the Bohol Provincial Development Council (PDC) that Aumentado chairs approved as early as last July 28 a resolution urgently requesting President Gloria Macapagal-Arroyo and Lapuz to allocate more funding for the construction of public school classrooms for Bohol to meet the acute shortage pegged at 454 for the elementary and secondary levels to be housed in 197 school buildings.

At the time, Bohol Schools Division Superintendent Cerina Bolos reported that DepED has an allocation of P16 million for the purpose – which is grossly inadequate for the construction of 454 classrooms in 197 buildings, hence the resolution to President Arroyo and Lapuz.

True to his convergence strategy, Aumentado has been constructing school buildings throughout the province at the lower cost of P300,000 per classroom – in tandem with the Federation of Filipino-Chinese Chamber of Commerce and Industry (FFCCCI).

DepED allocation

In his response to the resolution and Aumentado’s cover letter, Lapuz said he appreciated the governor’s concern for the construction of more school buildings.

“However, the appropriation for the CY {calendar year] 2006 School Building Program has been set at P2 billion. Of this amount, P1 billion shall be allocated by legislative districts in accordance with the allocation criteria under Republic Act 7880,” the secretary wrote.

Under RA 7880, 50% of the total capital outlay is to be allocated pro-rata according to each legislative district’s student population in relation to the toral student population of the country.

The other 40% goes to legislative districts with classroom shortages following DepED guidelines while the remaining 10% will be allocated in accordance with the policy of this Act as determined by the department.

The other P1 billion is utilized to address the classroom requirements of schools according to the red and black color codes of the Basic Education Information System (BEIS). Code red represents a pupil-to-room ratio of more than 56. Black means no classroom available/no existing instructional rooms.

Lapuz said under this allocation, Bohol ’s 1st District has P3.495 million of which P844,000 is for Tagbilaran and P2.651 million for the rest of the District. The 2nd and the 3rd Districts have P4.942 million and P5.716 million, respectively. This means Bohol has a total of P12.153 million to be implemented by DPWH.

The other P1 billion, to be implemented by DepED, allocates P2,486,830; P8,206,910 and P1,058,000 for the 1st, 2nd and 3rd Districts, respectively, or a total of P11,751,740 under Batch 1.

“For Batch 2, three projects in the 3rd District will be undertaken in the total amount of P1 million,” he said.

“While the amount is considered inadequate to meet the classroom requirements of the province, it will alleviate the condition of the students thereat,” he added.

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