#HumanRights #Teachers

Despite the President ordering it over a year ago, many of our public school teachers have not received the one-time rice assistance for government employees intended for fiscal year 2022. On December 16, 2022, President Ferdinand R. Marcos, Jr., signed Administrative Order (AO) No. 2, authorizing the grant of a 25-kilos one-time rice assistance to all the state workers.

As small as it may seem, but we are grateful that the government provided its employees with this one-time rice assistance at least the gesture. But we felt dismayed when January and February of 2023 came to an end and we still hadn’t received the promised rice.

Some teachers, though, reported receiving theirs in June of last year after waiting through March, April, and May. Regrettably, many of them expressed dissatisfaction with the rice’s poor quality. There have been complaints that some were rotten or bukbok-infested, while others claimed that it was odorous and unfit for human consumption.

The National Food Administration (NFA), according to the AO, shall issue the necessary guidelines within 10 days to implement the order, including an efficient and effective mechanism for the distribution of the rice assistance. In October 2023, we formally asked the NFA for the status of said incentive, but we have not received a reply. Then the year 2023 ended, and we have not heard of it.

We would like to think that the NFA may have been cautious in distributing the rice because of the concerns raised earlier, which is why it took longer. Sadly, there has been a delay of more than a year.

It is imperative that benefits and incentives be made readily available to teachers in order to foster a sense of worth and recognition of their dignity.

Reference:
Noel Galvez, Jr., TDC Spokesperson
0906-8152000
Teachers’ Dignity Coalition

Razon UMC Compound, Tomas St., De Castro Homesite, Sta. Quiteria, Caloocan City
Mobile: 0916-6126739 • Email: teachersdignity.ph@gmail.com