SENATE Committee on Basic Education Chairman Sherwin Gatchalian expressed alarm over the Department of Education’s report revealing a staggering 79,819 bullying cases from 2019 to 2022.

DepEd Assistant Secretary Dexter Galban stated that the data came from their online database, with over 65,000 cases categorized as physical bullying and more than 14,000 as cyberbullying.

Additionally, DepEd’s helpline data recorded 1,314 bullying-related incidents—including physical, verbal, cyberbullying, and general bullying—from November 24, 2022, to April 7, 2025.

Of these, 656 were allegedly committed by school personnel or other adults within the school, while 658 involved students.

Alarmingly, 565 of these cases resulted in violent outcomes, including 103 incidents involving stabbing, fatalities, gang-related violence, and other forms of physical harm.

The report also noted that 35 students aged 15 to 17 have been criminally charged for causing serious injury or death.

The data identified the National Capital Region, Region IV-A, and Region III as bullying hotspots with the highest number of reported cases.

Gatchalian urged DepEd to strengthen its intervention programs, improve school monitoring, and ensure accountability to protect students from further harm.