ACT Teachers Party-list Rep. and Deputy Minority Leader Antonio Tinio urged Malacañang and Congress to prioritize the long-standing demands of teachers as President Ferdinand Marcos Jr.’s fifth State of the Nation Address (SONA) and the 2027 national budget deliberations draw near.

Tinio said the administration must address what he described as the country’s worsening education crisis by turning its commitments to teachers into concrete legislation and sufficient budget allocations.

His call came after the Grand Lobbying held at the House of Representatives on May 26, where hundreds of public school teachers, private school educators, and university professors, led by ACT Teachers Party-list and the Alliance of Concerned Teachers (ACT), appealed to lawmakers to support education reforms and improve teachers’ welfare.

He said the teachers later held a dialogue with Speaker Faustino “Bojie” Dy and the chairpersons of the House committees on Appropriations, Basic Education, and Higher Education.

“Teachers came here last May not only to advocate for their welfare but also to demand that Congress address a broken education system that is failing our children,” Tinio said.

“As we begin the budget deliberations, the commitments made during the lobbying must be translated into concrete allocations. The demands of our teachers must be prioritized and not treated as an afterthought,” he added.

Tinio also criticized the implementation of the three-term school calendar, saying teachers were merely given an orientation rather than being meaningfully consulted before the policy was introduced.

“Teachers are not lab rats. This system should be carefully tested before being implemented nationwide,” he said.

The lawmaker likewise raised concerns over the alleged shortage of textbooks, claiming that the Department of Education (DepEd) procured only 27 textbook titles from 2012 to 2023 despite receiving billions of pesos in annual allocations.

He also criticized the implementation of the Academic Recovery and Accessible Learning (ARAL) Program, alleging that teachers rendered overtime work in 2025 despite earlier assurances that their participation would be voluntary.

On compensation, Tinio challenged claims that the government lacks funds for salary increases, arguing that teachers’ salaries have fallen behind those of nurses, police officers, and soldiers.

He also connected the issue to allegations of corruption in government, saying public funds should instead be directed toward education and other essential services rather than being lost to misuse.

Among the pending measures Tinio urged Congress to pass are the Teachers Protection Bill, Magna Carta of Private School Teachers, New Magna Carta of Public School Teachers, and the proposed measure lowering the optional retirement age for teachers.

He also reiterated calls to increase the education budget to six percent of the country’s gross domestic product (GDP), fully fund education programs, raise the Personnel Economic Relief Allowance (PERA) to ₱5,000, increase the minimum salary of government employees to ₱36,000, and set the entry-level salary of teachers at ₱50,000.

“The upcoming SONA and budget season will be the ultimate test of this administration’s political will. Teachers have spoken. Congress must listen and act—not through promises, but through concrete legislation and budget allocations that demonstrate that teachers are valued,” Tinio said.