ACT Teachers Party-list Rep. France Castro led the Makabayan bloc in filing House Resolution 1533 to probe the latest issuances of the Department of Education and Commission on Higher Education regarding the Government Assistance to Students and Teachers in Private Education program, in light of the right to access to quality education.

“This issue highlights the failure of the government during the transition period that it even failed to simply call for a thorough consultation with all the stakeholders but now is unilaterally removing the subsidies for these students,” Castro said.

“So there is a strong need to investigate the latest issuances of the DepEd and CHED related to the GASTPE program to determine if the implementation aligns with the constitutional mandate of providing quality education for all, regardless of their economic status,” she added.

Castro stressed that the House of Representatives must exercise its oversight function in ensuring that government programs and initiatives, particularly those concerning education, are in line with the principles of equity, transparency, and accountability.

“Ang kalidad na naman ng edukasyon ng ating mga mag-aaral lalo na ang mga Grade 11 at 12 sa mga SUCs at LUCs ang tatamaan dito kaya marapat na imbestigahan ito,” she further said.

“Huwag muna sanang ipatupad ang mga memo habang gumagawa ng karampatang solusyon para dito,” she added.