Senator Bam Aquino has called on President Ferdinand Marcos Jr. to certify as urgent the proposed Classroom-Building Acceleration Program (CAP) Act, a measure he said is vital to addressing the country’s alarming classroom shortage.
Aquino made the appeal following Public Works Secretary Vince Dizon’s disclosure that the Department of Public Works and Highways (DPWH) had completed only 22 classrooms this year—far short of the agency’s 1,700-target.
“All of us were really surprised… Our backlog is 145,000 above. That’s why these 22 classrooms built by the DPWH are really not acceptable,” Aquino said, expressing concern over the slow pace of construction under the current system.
The senator, who chairs the Senate Committee on Basic Education, stressed that the DPWH cannot solve the problem on its own and that broader participation is needed. His proposed Senate Bill No. 121, or the CAP Act, seeks to decentralize classroom construction by empowering local government units (LGUs) and qualified non-government organizations (NGOs) to build classrooms that meet Department of Education standards.
Aquino noted that while the bill has already been tagged as a priority measure by the administration, certifying it as urgent would fast-track its passage and complement the president’s directive to channel more funds directly to LGUs for infrastructure projects.
