The Teachers’ Dignity Coalition (TDC) welcomed the ₱1.3 trillion allocation for education under the 2026 General Appropriations Act (GAA).
In a statement, TDC National Chairperson Benjo Basas said the funding clearly shows that education should not be treated as secondary to other sectors.
However, the group expressed disappointment that funding for teachers’ salary increases was once again excluded from the budget.
The TDC has long been calling for a ₱15,000 across-the-board legislated salary increase for teachers.
Basas stressed that the government cannot speak of reform and recovery in education while continuing to delay justice and fair compensation for teachers.
Meanwhile, the Alliance of Concerned Teachers (ACT) Philippines also strongly questioned the Marcos administration’s veto of ₱43.245 billion in the 2026 national budget that was supposed to fund the hiring of new government employees and the retirement benefits of public sector workers.
(PHOTO COURTESY: DepEd)
