3 MIN READ
By JANINE GANAPIN
www.nordis.net
BAGUIO CITY—About 1,200 University of the Philippines Baguio (UPB) students and staff demanded accountability and fiscal transparency from the Office of the Chancellor regarding unutilized funds cited in the 2023 Commission on Audit (COA) Report for the UP System. The protest took place on February 26 at the campus parking lot.
Representatives from the university’s three student institutions—University Student Council (USC) Chairperson Eugene Enciso, Outcrop Editor-in-Chief Joseph Beaniza, and Council of Leaders Chairperson Carl Tampos—marched to the Office of the Chancellor to submit a position paper outlining USC’s five-point agenda.
However, Chancellor Joel Addawe, Vice Chancellor for Academic Affairs Alipio Garcia, and Vice Chancellor for Administration Jerico Bacani did not address the protest as they were in a meeting with the UP System.
Addawe was forced to receive the position paper when student representatives knocked on the boardroom where the meeting was being held.
“Disappointed ang pakiramdam ko dahil the sole reason kung bakit nag-walkout ang mahigit 1,200 UPB constituents is because they want to hear something from the administration, yet hindi napagbigyan,” Beaniza said.
(I feel disappointed because the sole reason why more than 1,200 UPB constituents walked out was that they wanted to hear something from the administration, yet they were not given the chance.)
“We just want to hear kung anong hakbangin ba ang ginagawa ng current admin to explain the budget misuse by the university, especially during the times of the past two chancellors,” he added.
(We just want to know what steps the current administration is taking to explain the university’s budget misuse, especially during the terms of the past two chancellors.)
The position paper urges the UP Board of Regents to:
- conduct democratic consultations in budget formulation,
- release local appropriations and allocations,
- adhere to COA recommendations,
- uphold fiscal transparency and accountability, and
- ensure that the UP System does not face budget cuts in 2026.
The COA published its Consolidated Annual Audit Report for the UP System (2018-2023) on December 13, 2024. The USC raised concerns over the non-maximization of UP funds, citing a COA finding that ₱115.45 million in General Appropriations Act (GAA) funds remained unspent. UPB was also flagged for failing to enforce contracts.
Margaux Sipin, USC Indigenous Peoples’ Desk Councilor, emphasized that while students continue to feel the effects of budget cuts, fund mismanagement persists within the university.
“Lahat ng ito [ay nangyari] habang mayroon tayong unutilized funds na dapat sana ay sa atin nagagastos at napupunta sa mga batayang serbisyo na alam naman natin ay kulang na kulang,” she said during the protest.
(This happened despite having unutilized funds that should have been used for much-needed basic services.)
Since January 21, students from the Alliance of Concerned Students (ACS) and Rise for Education (R4E) have led protests demanding transparency from the admin over the 2023 COA report. On February 21, the USC invited UP administrators to a town hall discussion to explain COA’s findings, but none attended.
Addawe later stated he might be put on a “hot seat.”
Representatives from the USC, College of Arts and Communication, College of Science, College of Social Sciences, Rise for Education UP Baguio, and the All U.P. Academic Employees Union-Baguio Chapter voiced their frustrations over the administration’s lack of accountability and transparency.
Charlene Ocampo, Alliance of Concerned Students leader, lamented the lack of classrooms and unmaintained facilities, noting that laboratories were turned into classrooms and the absence of charging stations for our equipment.
“Nakikita ninyo sa ating (cafeteria)? Kailangan pang magsaksak sa kisame para lang makapag-charge at makapag-aral. Wala tayong pwedeng tambayan para makagawa ng research,” said Charlene Ocampo, a member of ACS.
(Have you seen our cafeteria? We have to plug devices into the ceiling just to charge and study. There is no proper space for research work.)
Professor Rostum Alanas, a member of the All U.P. Academic Employees Union – Baguio Chapter, called for decent and secure employment, emphasizing the need to improve health benefits, including mental health support.
“Kalakip (nito) ang pagpapataas ng sahod at iba pang benepisyong ekonomikal kasabay ng kaliwa’t kanang pagtaas din ng mga presyo ng bilihin, at ang walang katapusang problema ng kakulangan sa faculty at staff items,” he added.
(This includes salary increases and other economic benefits amid rising costs of goods, along with the persistent shortage of faculty and staff positions.) #nordis.net
