No less than Education Secretary Jesli Lapuz said that collection of school fees is not a prerequisite to enrollment in public elementary and high schools where students enjoy free tuition.
But for Aling Nena (who requested anonymity for fear that the school administration might get back at her children), not only that she has paid the “tuition” of her two daughters at Lawang Bato High School, a public school in Valenzuela City. The “tuition” has also increased.
Last year, she said she has paid for “tuition” amounting to P100 ($2.17, based on an exchange rate of P46.08 per US dollar). This enrollment, it has increased to P200 ($4.34), excluding the Parents-Teacher Association (PTA) fee of P100 ($2.17).
Aside from that, she said that parents also complained to the DepEd about the cost of the school uniform. Aling Nena said that in the recent PTA meeting, the school administration and the parents agreed that only the costs of the uniforms of the freshmen will be increased.
However, they discovered that the school changed the uniform for sophomores, requiring the latter’s parents to order new sets of uniforms from the school. Aling Nena was dismayed that her sophomore daughter could no longer use her old uniform. And since a new set of uniform costs P450 ($9.77) each for small size, she might be forced to spend P900 ($19.53) if her daughter were to have two sets which she will use for the whole week.
Lapuz said that “contributions, whether for student activities or for upgrading of school facilities, can only be collected from students on a voluntary basis.”
At Paso de Blas Elementary School, a public school also in Valenzuela, P20 ($0.43) is being collected upon enrolment for the repainting of the school, said Mercy, a parent of a Grade II student. She said others who could not really afford the P20 ($0.43) would not pay for it. “Pero paano ka naman tatanggi kapag kaharap mo na ang teacher?” she said, noting that it might have a negative impact on her child’s relationship with the teacher. (But how can you refuse if you are in front of the teacher?)
For her daughter studying at Maysan National High School, another public school in Valenzuela, she paid “tuition” amounting to P200 ($4.34). The receipt, however, only reflected an amount of P190 ($4.12). She was told that the remaining P10 ($0.22) was payment for the paper’s receipt.
The DepEd said that only authorized fees are for Boy Scouts, Girl Scouts, Red Cross and the Anti-TB campaign but these fees are “voluntary.” Contributions for school papers should not be more than P55 and P80 ($1.19 and $1.74) for elementary and secondary levels, respectively. DepEd-recognized student organizations are also allowed to collect “voluntary contributions” up to P55 ($1.19) per student.
The DepEd Oplan Balik Eskwela (Operation Back to School) Command Center reported that it is now investigating several public schools after receiving complaints about the illegal collection of fees in these schools. Among those being investigated are Novaliches Elementary School (ES), Krus na Ligas ES, Barangay Holy Spirit ES, Commonwealth ES, San Antonio ES and Lagro National High School in Quezon City.
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