TACLOBAN CITY – Several universities in Eastern Visayas have joined and signed a petition initiated by the Kabataan Partylist, urging the restoration of budget cuts for State Universities and Colleges (SUCs) in the 2025 budget.
“The majority of these budget cuts were focused on capital outlay, or the funds allocated for facilities, equipment, and other investments that serve beyond the next fiscal year,” the unity statement read.
The petitioners argued that instead of reducing the budget for SUCs, it should be increased to meet the growing demand from students entering higher education.
“Additional budget is needed for our learning institutions to regain their public character and provide ample support for student services and faculty development.
If our SUCs are expected to fulfill their roles as higher education institutions, they must be funded accordingly,” the statement added.
The Department of Budget and Management (DBM) has proposed P113.75 billion for SUCs in 2025, down from P128.13 billion in the previous year.
According to a report by An Lantawan, the official student publication of Leyte Normal University, universities could face a P1.46 million cut in maintenance and other operating expenses (MOOE) and an P82.5 million decrease in capital outlay.
“In the National Expenditure Program for fiscal year 2025, State Universities and Colleges (SUCs) are set to experience a significant budget cut totaling Php 14,481,231,000.
Most of these reductions are focused on Capital Outlay, which includes facilities, equipment, and other long-term investments.
This comes despite an increase in the budget for the Free Higher Education Program, indicating that the Marcos Jr. administration has acknowledged rising enrollment rates for the next year,” the statement noted.
Universities in Eastern Visayas, including Dr. Victor Cañezo, Jr. of Biliran Province State University (BiPSU), Dr. Jude Duarte of Southern Leyte State University (SLSU), Dr. Prose Ivy Yepes of Visayas State University (VSU), and Dr. Evelyn Aguirre of Leyte Normal University (LNU), have also supported the call.
“We, the undersigned, hereby register our call on the 19th Congress of the Philippines to restore the slashed budget for all State Universities and Colleges and to further augment the Higher Education Budget for fiscal year 2025. Additional budget is needed for our learning institutions to regain their public character and provide ample support for student services and faculty development. If our SUCs are expected to carry out their duties as higher education institutions, they must be funded accordingly,” they added.