UP Kilos Na Statement on "UP President Thanks Pnoy for Increased Budget of UP, Other SUCs"

"A MAJOR DISAPPOINTMENT: The Non-Acknowledgment of the Role of the UP Community in “UP President Thanks Pnoy for Increased Budget of UP, Other SUCs.”

This was the statement made by U.P. Kilos Na on July 21, 2012 in reaction to the UP website which carried a July 20 article, headlined “UP President Thanks Pnoy for Increased Budget of UP, Other SUCs” (http://www.up.edu.ph/index.php/read-more/20-announcements/275-up-president-thanks-pnoy-for-increased-budget-of-up-other-sucs).

The statement from U.P. Kilos Na said

"While UP Kilos Na welcomes the news of Malacanang’s proposed increase of P3.9 billion in UP’s 2013 budget and an increase of P11.3 billion for the 2012 budget of State Universities and Colleges (SUCs), it does so with scepticism until:

1)   this proposal is passed by Congress and enacted as the 2013 General Appropriations Act; and

2)   a clearer breakdown of the increases in the personal services and the MOOE is clarified. The allocation for personal services is expected to increase because of the implementation of the fourth and last tranche of the Salary Standardization Law III which was passed in 2008.  And we do not know the itemization of the MOOE or even the details of the allocation for Capital Outlay.

 What is disappointing about the announcement released by UP Vice President for Public Administration, Prospero de Vera, aside from it being premature, is the abject manner by which President Alfredo Pascual expressed his gratitude to President Aquino, to DBM Budget Secretary Abad and to CHED Chair Licuanan:

"The leadership of President Aquino, coupled with committed support from CHED Chair Patricia Licuanan and DBM Secretary Butch Abad, is responsible for the biggest ever increase in the UP budget and we thank the PNoy administration for this decisive action, adds Pascual."

The statement of President Pascual denies the fact that it was Aquino and Abad who were principally responsible for the cuts in the UP budget in 2011 and 2012, said the U.P. Kilos Na statement.

The U.P. Kilos Na statement quoted from President Aquino's budget message of August 24, 2010 which said that:

"We allocated P23.4 billion to 112 State Universities and Colleges (SUCs) in 2011. This is 1.7 percent lower than the P23.8 billion budget for 2010. We are gradually reducing the subsidy to SUCs to push them toward becoming self-sufficient and financially independent, given their ability to raise their income and to utilize it for their programs and projects."

The statement of President Pascual also denies, omits, and erases the role of the UP community, its students, faculty and staff in almost all constituent universities, in opposing the budget cuts and in demanding for higher state subsidy to UP and for all SUCs, said U.P. Kilos Na. 

"It is historical revisionism at its worst and is tragic because barely a year has passed since the 2012 UP Strikes Back campaign and already the role of the UP community has been deleted from the official statement of the UP President!"

"But if such role is not acknowledged by President Pascual, the various documentation of the actions in 2010 and 2011  provides clear evidence that the proposed increase in UP’s budget for 2013 is not due to the generosity of the powers-that-be but is the recognition of the validity of the demand, raised by the UP community in various venues and various forms, that public universities should be adequately supported by the state," U.P. Kilos Na said in its statement.

"The Pascual  Administration’s  “amnesia” on the role of the students, faculty, and staff in asserting and in fighting against the diminishing public character of the University does not augur well for the UP community. But as the history of the University itself has shown, a united and militant studentry, faculty and staff, regardless of who sits in Quezon Hall and the extent of its kowtowing to Malacanang, will continue to fight, to march and to claim UP as a public university, as a university of the people and in the service of the poor and marginalized," U.P. Kilos Na said in its statement.

UP President thanks PNoy for increased budget of UP, other SUCs

The Department of Budget and Management (DBM) has officially released a statement that the University of the Philippines "is set to receive a P3.9-billion increase in (its) budget, raising (the) total 2013 allocation to P10 billion." This is 63 percent more than the 2012 UP budget of P6.2 billion as provided for in the General Appropriations Act (GAA) passed last year. The DBM also announced that "the 2013 budget for State Universities and Colleges (SUCs) was raised by P11.3 billion to P37.1 billion, up by 44 percent from their 2012 budget."

As regards the 2013 UP budget, DBM gives the following details: "(Capital Outlay) support rose from P190 million in 2012 to P1.45 billion, while the allocation for Personal Services was pegged at P6.5 billion, up by P1.2 billion from this year... (Maintenance and Other Operating Expenses) activities under UP will receive a 188.2 percent boost amounting to P2 billion, which will cover research and other related activities for the university’s nationwide campuses. The remaining amount will be devoted to retirement and life insurance premium (RLIP) support for faculty and staff." A footnote points out that the stated Personnel Services amount "does not include unfilled positions."

For this year, an additional P1.3 billion for Capital Outlay was allocated to UP through the Commission of Higher Education (CHED) as part of the Disbursement Acceleration Plan (DAP) of President Aquino. The combined GAA budget and additional DAP allocation from the Disbursement Acceleration Fund resulted in a total government funding to UP of about P7 billion for 2012 (excluding unfilled positions).

UP President Alfredo Pascual acknowledges the support of Malacañang, DBM and CHED in increasing the 2013 budget for the country's national university. According to Pascual “the dramatic increase in UP’s budget shows that the national leadership has recognized that UP is worth investing in.” He explains, “Money given to UP is not an expense but an investment in the country’s human capital and knowledge base. UP contributes to national development by producing leaders in various fields, expert manpower needed by industry and higher education, plus research outputs that drive innovation and national competitiveness. UP also makes use of the knowledge and expertise of its faculty and staff to deliver public service.”

As the national university, UP is mandated by its charter of 2008 (RA 9500) to “perform its unique and distinctive leadership in higher education and development”.

“The increased budget”, says Pascual, “will help UP to strengthen its research capability; modernize its technological infrastructure; repair its aging physical facilities; recruit, develop, and retain the best faculty and staff; improve support for its students; deepen its public service; and reclaim its standing as a center of learning in Asia and the world.”

“The leadership of President Aquino, coupled with committed support from CHED Chair Patricia Licuanan and DBM Secretary Butch Abad, is responsible for the biggest ever increase in the UP budget and we thank the PNoy administration for this decisive action,” adds Pascual.