Cayetano seeks wider access to tertiary education for top students of public high schools

Press Release
June 14, 2012

PASAY CITY  –  Senate minority leader Alan Peter Cayetano has asked the national government to provide more deserving public school students easier access to tertiary education.

He said it is the State’s duty to ensure that quality education is accessible to all regardless of the economic status of students.

He filed Senate Bill No. 3225 entitled the Iskolar ng Bayan Act of 2012, which aims to help outstanding graduates of national high schools to gain access to college education.

“The bill seeks to enable students of public high schools who graduate among the top ten of their class to earn full scholarships provided by the government in the state college or university of their choice,” he said.

Cayetano said he expects some 24,905 top ten students from the public high schools to benefit yearly, providing them the opportunity to pursue their dreams of a better a life armed with a college education.

He lamented that according to the 2010 Annual Poverty Indicators Survey, 16% of the estimated 39 million Filipinos between 6 to 24 years old are Out-of-School-Youth (OSY).

“This translates to 6.24 million OSY or one out of eight Filipinos aged between 6 to 24 is an out-of-school youth,” he said.

He noted that the survey also revealed that the foremost reasons were: 1) high cost of education; 2) employment/looking for work; and 3) lack of personal interest.

“These data is indicative of the need to make education more accessible to the students,” he said.