Group claims number of schools closing down due to bankruptcy increasing

MANILA, Philippines - More and more private schools are closing down every year due to bankruptcy, the Federation of Private Schools and Administrators (FAPSA) claimed Thursday. FAPSA President Ely Kasilag said that this coming school year proves the most critical in the effort to educate the youth since more and more poor parents are choosing food over their children’s education due to high cost of living. “Between good education and food on the table, parents prioritize food for stomach over food for the brain. Not only rice, gasoline, fare and pandesal affect parents in the schools, our schools are closing,” he said. Kasilag did not give exactly figures, but said that in Marikina alone, two schools that have served the community for more than a decade have stopped registration of their high school students, while another one had closed down its entire school operation for next school year. “These are Christian schools offering complete basic education from preschool to secondary. They are already recognized schools, meaning, they have satisfied all the minimum requirements of the Department of Education,” Kasilag said. He added that big schools are not closing down have retrenched many of their teaching staff. To solve this, Kasilag said a bureau that would facilitate and address the problems of private schools to protect them from bankruptcy should be created. - GMANews.TV