Two Grade 8 students from Captain Albert Aguilar National High School in Las Piñas died after being stabbed by three of their classmates on Friday night.
According to Las Piñas Police Chief Col. Sandro Jay Tafalla, the victims, who were cousins, got into an argument with their attackers over a light switch in their classroom.
As the cousins were on their way home around 7 p.m., they were allegedly chased and stabbed about 100 meters from the school premises.
One was stabbed in the chest, while the other suffered a fatal wound to the neck.
The suspects include a 15-year-old Grade 9 student, a 14-year-old Grade 7 student, and a 16-year-old Grade 10 student.
One victim was declared dead on arrival, while the other died two hours later despite medical efforts.
Tafalla added that the Philippine National Police will meet with school officials to discuss stricter security measures on campus.
This is not the first school-related violence in Metro Manila—just recently, a Grade 8 student in Parañaque was killed after refusing to lend a classmate a makeup kit.
Earlier, a brawl in Pasig led to two students sustaining injuries.
In response to the growing number of school violence cases, Senator Sherwin Gatchalian called for a Senate inquiry, describing the Philippines as the “bullying capital of the world” based on data from the Program for International Student Assessment.
From November 2022 to April 2025, the Department of Education reported a total of 658 bullying complaints nationwide.
It is also alarming that out of nearly 45,000 public schools in the country, only 966 have active anti-bullying committees.
The Department of Education reiterated its serious commitment to addressing bullying and ensuring immediate action and sustained efforts to make schools safer for all learners.