Took her life for an unpaid bill

It was more than a tragedy when freshman Kristel Tejada of the University of the Philippines (UP) Manila took her own life for an unpaid bill, a bill which she shouldn't be paying for.

Tejada was asked by the administration to file a Leave of Absence in lieu of her remaining balance for the semester. It was said that she tried to raise money to pay her tuition during the semester, but school demanded too much and it was hard to cope up. She also tried applying for loans, scholarships and wrote promissory notes but this did not help her financial burden. Not even her mother's plea with both knees to the ground worked.

UP's system to determine a student's tuition is supposedly based on the income of his/her parents and their status of living.Tejada was the eldest of five. Her mother was a housewife and her father a taxi driver. She was assigned to bracket D, which meant she had to pay P300 per unit plus miscellaneous fees - the irony of being in a state university.

But still, Tejada was hopeful to finish her education and help her family.

By simple logic state universities are subsidized institutions by the no less than the government. Education is supposed to be given for free or if not with the least amount possible. In the case of UP, it is a state university and also the national university as mandated in Republic Act No. 9500. But in reality, students are burdened to pay tuition and other fees. Not to mention the daily expense of going to school plus the demand of paperwork. This leaves them with no choice but to set aside a meal in exchange for photocopies of today's lesson.

The constitution mandates the government to “protect and promote the right of all citizens to quality education at all levels, and take appropriate steps to make such education accessible to all”. It also asks the government to “provide a system of scholarship grants, student load programs subsidies which shall be available to deserving students, especially the under privileged.”

But education is not accessible to all, not even to the underprivileged who deserves it more than those who can afford to pay. Promising students are forced to abandon their dreams to graduate on time and land a job for their family and the country. She is only one of the thousands of students who cannot enjoy a good life because something's lacking - education.

One must not forget that to invest in the youth of today is a treasure to reap in the future. But since as early as now this investment has been slowly reduced, there is not much to expect in a country like ours.

Unless there will be change.

Being part of an active student body we are disappointed at the system and angry at the burden that we and our parents have to carry just to be able to get a degree. The incident is not ordinary. This is an eye-opener to future policy makers and individuals who are involved in the education sector of this country.

This May 2013, we are to elect senators and congressmen who are will be our future policy makers. Part of their duty is to allocate the budget for state universities and the other expenses of the country.

Being critical voters, we must choose candidates who are willing to invest in the country's education system, those who have a burden for the youth and understands their role in building this nation.

In a developing country like ours, education is the key to empower our citizens even those who are the poorest of the poor. There should be change and justice to a system who does not recognize the right of every individual, most especially the youth.