Filipino students have become the focus of a renewed government safety push, with President Ferdinand Marcos Jr. ordering multiple agencies to tighten protections in the wake of several deadly incidents at schools nationwide.
The directive, announced in a vlog posted to the President’s official social media accounts on Saturday, June 27, covers agencies handling education, law enforcement, health, and local governance. Marcos framed the issue in personal terms.
“Ngayong araw, hindi lamang bilang Pangulo ang aking pananalita, kundi bilang isang ama, bilang kapwa-Pilipino, at bilang isang taong lubos na nag-aalala sa kaligtasan ng ating mga anak,” he said.
“Inatasan ko ang ating mga ahensya sa edukasyon, kapulisan, kalusugan, at lokal na pamahalaan na higit pang palakasin ang mga hakbang para sa kaligtasan ng mga mag-aaral sa buong bansa,” he added.
The President was explicit that responsibility cannot rest with government alone. He called on parents, teachers, and schools to take a more active role, stressing that state action by itself would fall short. Teachers, he said, should continue acting as mentors and advisers, not only as instructors, while schools were told to enforce safety rules rigorously — covering field trips, training camps, and other off-campus activities as much as classrooms.
Several of the incidents that prompted the directive remain under investigation, with early reports pointing to possible links to bullying, a problem Marcos noted continues to affect young people. He drew a common thread across cases that otherwise differ in nature.
“Magkaiba man ang mga pangyayaring ito, iisa ang mensaheng ipinapakita nila sa atin. Kailangan maprotektahan ang ating mga kabataan,” he said. “Nakakadurog talaga ng puso,” he added.
The cases he cited include a fatal shooting inside a Tacloban City school, two separate stabbing incidents involving bladed weapons at schools in Cavite within a single week, and the drowning deaths of two Ateneo de Manila University student-athletes during a team-building activity — a loss that drew widespread grief and anger.
Marcos also spoke directly to students, urging them to reach out when they are struggling.
“Sa bawat estudyanteng nanonood ngayon, mahalaga ang inyong buhay, mahalaga ang inyong mga pinagdadaanan, at ang paghingi ng tulong ay hindi kailanman tanda ng kahinaan,” he said.
He pressed parents to value their presence in their children’s lives, describing attentiveness as a form of protection in itself.
“Minsan, ang pinakamahalagang proteksyong maibibigay natin sa ating mga anak ay ang ating oras, atensyon at pag-unawa,” he stressed.
The President said schools must stay places where students can learn and chase their ambitions, not environments where families worry about whether their children are safe.
