PRESIDENT Ferdinand Marcos Jr. on Wednesday assured the public that ghost projects and substandard classrooms would have no place in the implementation of the newly signed agreement between the Department of Education (DepEd) and local government units (LGUs) to speed up the construction of classrooms nationwide.
In his speech during the signing of a memorandum of agreement between DepEd and LGUs in Malacañang, Marcos said the setup would help prevent ghost projects and substandard construction, as local officials were directly accountable to their communities.
Classroom turnover would require the written validation from DepEd confirming compliance with standards, underscoring transparency requirements for implementation.
“The DepEd funds for classrooms in your area, instead of going through the national government, will, as much as possible, be handled directly by the LGU if they are capable,” Marcos said.
“I told them, ’What if there’s a problem again with a ghost project or substandard work? That won’t happen under the LGU. It won’t work because the people are right in front of you. If you don’t do your job properly, you will be held accountable. Every day — you’ll be knocked on at night. They’ll tell you, ‘Fix the problem,’” he added.
The president said the classroom shortage as of December 2025 amounted to 145,000 units.
“Because we cannot wait [for] another five or 10 years to ensure that every student has a comfortable classroom, we have initiated this partnership with the local government units. That is one of our strategies,” he added.
Under the agreement, DepEd will provide funding, technical standards and classroom designs, while LGUs will handle procurement and the construction of the classrooms in their areas.
The DepEd will identify priority schools, provide standard classroom designs and technical specifications, and exercise oversight by reviewing plans, validating completed works and ensuring that projects meet national safety, accessibility and quality standards.
The agreement also sets out shared responsibilities in funding and long-term maintenance, with strict monitoring, reporting and transparency requirements to ensure the timely completion of projects and proper use of public funds.
Marcos said the partnership was supported by the 2026 General Appropriations Act, which allocated P85.39 billion for Basic Education Facilities.
For the first tranche of the program, the government allocated P9.6 billion, of which P4.1 billion will fund the construction of about 1,200 classrooms.
“In total, the first tranche will deliver 4,000 new classrooms nationwide, which we hope will directly improve the daily learning and teaching experience,” he said.
Meanwhile, more than P5 billion will be used by DepEd to provide around 2,800 prefabricated classrooms.
Marcos said the partnership ensured that LGUs were given not only additional responsibilities but also the necessary funding from the national government.
Instead of channeling funds through national agencies, he said that classroom construction budgets would be directly downloaded to capable LGUs to allow faster implementation and reduce delays in construction.
“By giving the LGUs greater role in the implementation, we streamline the process. We reduce delays and move faster in building schools that our children need,” the president said.
Aside from addressing the classroom shortage, Marcos also underscored the need to improve digital connectivity in schools, noting that nearly 34,000 public schools already have internet access.
He pledged that education would be the top priority of his administration for the remainder of his term.
“It’s only the beginning. We will continue to provide all the support that our children need,” the president said.
“Let us all work together as we ensure that our children will get the education that they deserve in this age of Bagong Pilipinas,” he added.
