Education Secretary Sonny Angara and Land Bank President and CEO   Ma. Lynette V. Ortiz lead the ceremonial signing of the loan assistance partnership between the Department of Education and Land Bank of the Philippines aimed at helping public school teachers and non-teaching personnel facing heavy salary deductions due to debt obligations. — DEPED

The Department  of Education (DepEd), in partnership with the Land Bank of the Philippines (LANDBANK), launched its loan assistance arrangement on Thursday to help education workers struggling with garnished salaries.

“Teachers who work everyday to uplift the future of our youth should not be drowning in debt,” Education Secretary Juan Edgardo “Sonny” M. Angara said in Filipino in a news release.

“If we can help them recover and breathe financially again, it is our duty to do so,” he added.

Under the partnership, LANDBANK offers a lower interest rate from 7% to 6.5% per annum, which DepEd said is “significantly lower” compared to the 3% monthly interest in unaccredited private lending institutions’ arrangements.

The partnership could benefit about 1,000 garnished salary loan accounts, amounting to an estimated P500 million.

“These are not add-ons, they’re part of building a more complete financial relationship with teachers who have been historically underserved by the formal banking system,” LANDBANK President and Chief Executive Officer Ma. Lynette V. Ortiz said in a news release.

Affected personnel will also receive a minimum of P5,000 net take-home pay under the agreement, which DepEd said is an improvement after previously receiving little to no salary due to heavy deductions and garnishment.

“When our teachers are more at ease, they can better focus on their most important duty – teaching and guiding our students,” Mr. Angara said.

The Alliance of Concerned Teachers (ACT) Philippines, however, denounced the new partnership and reiterated its call for a P50,000 entry-level salary for teachers.

“The lives of teachers will not improve as long as salaries are not livable and wage increases remain meager,” the group said in Filipino on a Facebook post.

Earlier reports from ACT and IBON Foundation showed that 75% of 900,000 public school teachers nationwide are in debt through official salary-deduction schemes, private lending institutions, government loans, and informal high-interest lenders.

Teachers’ loans range from P5,000 to P200,000, with the majority citing college tuition for children, house acquisition and repair, hospitalization fees, and instructional materials as their primary causes. — Almira Louise S. Martinez

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