THE SAMAHAN ng Progresibong Kabataan on Tuesday threatened to call for a national online class boycott if the government continues to take no action on distance learning problems.

The SPARK has claimed that the Commission on Higher Education and President Rodrigo Duterte failed to address the concerns of the education sector.

“It is bad enough that they created our problems. But to pretend like they do not exist, or that they had no hand in them, is utterly disgusting and condemnable,” SPARK national spokesman John Lazaro said.

“CHED in particular has made its mission the deflection of responsibility to school administrations and local government officials since the onset of online classes,” Lazaro added.

The group cited the refusal of CHED Chairman Prospero de Vera III to issue a nationwide academic break after six typhoons hit the country.

The group also slammed the Duterte administration for dismissing distance learning problems encountered by students.

“We should not have undergone any of these issues had President Duterte acted decisively in favor of the poor families by issuing an Executive Order to implement an Academic Freeze but instead, we got threats of defunding,” Lazaro said.

The group said it will join its Katipunan chapter in holding a strike on Wednesday, November 25.

“The Ateneo strike is only the beginning. We will not hesitate to call for wider class boycotts if our issues remain unaddressed,” Lazaro said.