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Senator wants increased tuition subsidy for private school transferees


If the government could give subsidy for rising fuel prices, it should be able to augment the subsidy for poor students who wish to enroll in private schools, said Sen. Edgardo Angara on Thursday. "Maybe (the) government... can get more savings and put it into (the) Government Assistance to Students and Teachers in Private Education (GASTPE) so that they can help students in private schools cope with the rising tuition," Angara said during a weekly forum at the Senate. Angara, chairman of the Senate committee on education, arts, and culture, said it does not need a law to augment the GASTPE. GASTPE, which was under Republic Act No. 6728, subsidizes the transfer of public school students to private schools. The Department of Budget and Management (DBM) released last March P5.769 billion for the program. Angara, however, said the government should find an additional P2 billion to channel to GASTPE so that students will not burdened by rising tuition rates. "That's the only remedy I can think of... you'll force private systems to close if you have a compulsory cap on how much they can charge in tuition," he said. He said the Commission on Higher Education has no authority to impose a ban or a moratorium because their power is "more persuasive than coercive." Angara also said the government can tap non-government organizations to help build the additional classrooms needed in the country. "You have to think of ways like that to build more classrooms and to tap more resources outside public resources," he said. - Kimberly Jane Tan/KBK, GMA News

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