After the three-day National Leaders Training Seminar launched by the Alliance of Concerned Teachers (ACT)-Philippines in Baguio City, participating teachers marched in the city for wages, education budgets, and accountability for poverty, corruption and government impunity. Participants in the seminar and march came from different regions of the country.

“The unity walk demonstrates teachers’ collective outrage against a government that abandoned its responsibility to the people,” ACT-Philippines chairman Vladimer Quetua said. According to local reports, about 70 participated in the march while 500 were delegates to the seminar.

Quetua said teachers from Luzon to Mindanao are rising to hold the government accountable for the systematic plunder of public funds by the Marcos regime and its officials. He said the extreme lack of schools, poverty and hunger of the Filipino family, and violation of human and unionizing rights heighten the people’s outrage against plunder.

“We teachers are among the victims of non-living wages, meager wage increases, high prices of commodities and other expenses, low funds for education, and state repression. We are thus united with the people in the movement to charge and hold accountable the government that exploits the public treasury and oppresses the people,” Quetua said.

Makabayan senatorial candidates ACT Teachers Party-list Rep. France Castro and Moro leader Amira Lidasan, as well as ACT Teachers first nominee Antonio Tinio expressed unity with and participated in the march.

ACT-Philippines shared that the march is part of a series of mass actions expected to culminate in a mass protest on January 31 led by Taumbayan Ayaw sa Magnanakaw at Abusado Network Alliance (TAMA NA). TAMA NA calls to fight against the impoverishment, corruption and irresponsibility of Marcos and Duterte.