Senator Sherwin Gatchalian on Wednesday dismissed concerns on the constitutionality of the 2025 Government Appropriations Act, underscoring that budgets for the Philippine Military Academy and the Philippine National Police Academy can be qualified as allocation for the education sector.
Senator Sherwin Gatchalian has clarified that the budgets of the Philippine Military Academy (PMA) and the Philippine National Police Academy (PNPA) are part of the education sector allocation under the 2025 Government Appropriations Act (GAA).
He dismissed concerns over the budget’s constitutionality, emphasizing that these institutions qualify as part of the broader education sector.
During the Kapihan sa Senado on Wednesday, Gatchalian explained that the PMA and PNPA, as institutions offering Bachelor of Science degrees, are classified as tertiary education institutions (TEIs) and, therefore, fall under the education sector.
“My point is that since these institutions offer Bachelor of Science programs, they are considered tertiary education institutions. And suppose you are a tertiary education institution. In that case, you’re part of the education sector,” said Gatchalian, who chairs the Senate Committee on Basic Education and co-chairs the 2nd Congressional Commission on Education (EDCOM 2).
He further noted that confusion stems from the common misconception that “education” in the Constitution exclusively refers to basic education managed by the Department of Education (DepEd).
“What is written in the Constitution is simply ‘education.’ It does not specify basic education, tertiary education, or tech-voc. So, when you say ‘education,’ it encompasses the entire sector, including technical-vocational education,” he explained.
Article XIV, Section 5 (5) of the Philippine Constitution mandates the state to prioritize education in its budget, stating, “The State shall assign the highest budgetary priority to education and ensure that teaching will attract and retain its rightful share of the best available talents through adequate remuneration and other means of job satisfaction and fulfillment.”
Gatchalian affirmed that the education sector maintains the highest allocation in the 2025 GAA, citing calculations that include tertiary education institutions like the PMA and PNPA.
“When we computed the total allocation for the education sector, including these tertiary education institutions, it remains the highest,” he said.
Last week, Department of Budget and Management Secretary Amenah Pangandaman announced that the education sector received the largest allocation in the 2025 national budget, P1.055 trillion, surpassing the Department of Public Works and Highways, which was allocated P1.007 trillion following budget cuts.
The education funding is distributed across various institutions and agencies, including DepEd, the Commission on Higher Education (CHED), the Technical Education and Skills Development Authority (TESDA), the Local Government Academy, the Philippine Public Safety College, the National Defense College of the Philippines, the Philippine Science High School System, the Science Education Institute, state universities and colleges, and tertiary education institutions such as the PMA and PNPA.
Gatchalian’s clarification reinforces the inclusivity of the education sector in the national budget, ensuring that all forms of education receive appropriate funding to fulfill the constitutional mandate.