President Ferdinand Marcos Jr. on Tuesday joined Brigada Eskwela activities in Navotas, calling for safer, cleaner and more learner-friendly schools as millions of students prepare to return to classrooms next week.
Marcos visited Kapitbahayan Elementary School, where he inspected classrooms, helped paint a wall and checked the school’s newly operational closed-circuit television system.
The CCTV network is part of the Department of Education’s intensified campus security efforts aimed at addressing bullying, vandalism and unauthorized entry in schools.
The President was joined by Education Secretary Sonny Angara, Social Welfare Secretary Rex Gatchalian, Labor Acting Secretary Francis Tolentino, volunteers, teachers and parents.
Marcos thanked those who joined Brigada Eskwela, saying the annual school maintenance effort remains crucial in making campuses ready for learners before the opening of School Year 2026-2027.
The government is implementing Brigada Eskwela activities in 181 schools nationwide with the help of 4,597 beneficiaries of the Tulong Panghanapbuhay sa Ating Displaced/Disadvantaged Workers program.
Around P37.14 million has been allocated for the wages of the TUPAD beneficiaries.
This is in addition to an earlier Brigada Eskwela-TUPAD rollout in 147 schools, which involved 3,658 beneficiaries. At least P26.12 million has already been released to workers under the program.
After the school inspection, Marcos led a reading session for kindergarten and Grade 3 pupils. He read “Ang Matsing at Ang Pagong,” written by national hero Jose Rizal, and distributed stuffed toys to the children.
The activity also highlighted the Department of Social Welfare and Development’s “Tara Basa” program, which aims to address reading gaps among young public school learners.
Gatchalian said the program runs for 20 learning days and helps prepare children for school while providing temporary jobs to college students, who receive P500 per day as tutors and youth development workers.
For 2026, Tara Basa aims to reach 133,620 learners, with 11,468 college students serving as tutors and 7,570 others as youth development workers.