Iloilo City Government will no longer extend free school supplies to students and pupils enrolled in public schools.
In an interview, Mayor Jed Patrick E. Mabilog said that the Commission on Audit (COA) will not allow the utilization of government funds for the purchase of school materials.
Republic Act 5447, which mandates the creation of the special education fund (SEF), specifies that priority should be given to the construction, repair and maintenance of school buildings and other facilities of public elementary and secondary schools.
Also, the fund can be utilized for the establishment and maintenance of extension classes where necessary and sports activities at the division, district, municipal and barangay levels.
The city government used to allot PHP1 million from the SEF annually for the acquisition of school supplies.
However, with the stricter implementation of RA 5447, public school pupils and students have to wait for philanthropists to give them free school materials. [via PNA]
