Lawmaker pushes mental health support over school security spending

By Mariela Angella Oladive

ILOILO CITY — Iloilo 3rd District Rep. Lorenz Defensor urged greater attention to students’ mental health at home and in the classroom amid calls for tighter school security following recent shooting incidents involving students.

Defensor said in an Aug. 24 interview that schools cannot rely on security measures alone, given the number of students and the Department of Education’s competing budget priorities.

“You cannot monitor thousands of students in one school, and we cannot put guards, metal detectors, and X-ray machines in all schools,” he said.

He said deploying security guards in every school may be beneficial but must be weighed against existing needs.

“If you look at DepEd’s budget priorities, there is already a shortage of teachers, along with needs for feeding programs, classrooms, and water systems. I’m sure security guards in all schools cannot yet be afforded,” he said.

He also raised concerns about requiring students to use transparent bags, particularly if families would have to shoulder the cost.

“If the government does not provide funding for students to buy transparent bags, that would be an added expense, especially for poor families,” he said.

He said the proposal also faces funding limits, with no money currently allocated for its implementation.

“So we have to start with what is implementable—mental health support at home and in the classroom,” he said.

He said parental involvement should be the starting point.

Western Visayas schools have taken steps of their own to strengthen preparedness for such incidents.

DepEd-6 earlier conducted an active-shooter simulation at its regional office in Iloilo City, covering lockdown and evacuation procedures, incident command, and casualty management.

Mental health support, however, remains thinly staffed.

As of June 30, DepEd-6 had filled only 44 of 350 plantilla guidance counselor positions in secondary schools across the region.

Elementary schools in the region have no plantilla guidance counselor positions at all.

The shortage comes as schools implement the Basic Education Mental Health and Well-Being Promotion Act, which requires a Care Center in every public school and a Mental Health and Well-Being Office in every Schools Division Office.

Under the Guidance and Counseling Act of 2004, only registered and licensed guidance counselors may occupy those positions, a requirement that has narrowed the pool of eligible applicants across the public school system.