More than 5,000 students of the University of the Philippines (UP) walked out and boycotted classes on September 12 to protest corruption and irregularities in government, especially in flood control projects under the Marcos regime. The boycott took place in four UP campuses, including Diliman in Quezon City, Manila, Pampanga, and Tacloban City, as part of a series of demonstrations and activities against corruption in recent weeks.

In UP Diliman, an estimated 5,000 students, teachers, and supporters joined the campus march. According to the UP Diliman University Student Council, which helped lead the mass action, the protest served as a clear message of the youth’s unity and determination against corruption.

Students dressed in black converged at Palma Hall around noon from their respective colleges, where student councils, national-democratic groups, and other organizations launched local programs. The protest was considered the largest demonstration on campus in almost a decade.

The chants of the people’s scholars echoed, demanding accountability from all the corrupt, accompanied by loud drums and progressive songs. According to the groups, contractors and politicians steal enormous amounts from substandard projects while the construction of campus facilities has long been stalled.

UPD USC Chairperson Joaquin Buenaflor said, “This is only the beginning of broadening and strengthening protests.”

In UP Manila, more than 600 students joined the protest and march. They condemned the government for the corruption that worsens the lack of campus space and the slow pace of construction in many buildings.

The groups condemned the longstanding delay in the repair of Rizal Hall, a project contracted for ₱30 million to the Discaya family’s St. Timothy Construction Corporation. The construction remains unfinished after more than six years.

In UP DEPPO in Clark, Pampanga, more than 200 students walked out of classes in solidarity with the day of protest. In UP Tacloban, at least 120 students protested despite the rain.

The persistence of the four campuses’ student councils gained the support of chancellors, deans, and directors of several colleges for the demonstration. The expression of support by some UP administrators reflected a strong message against the Marcos regime’s corruption.

“The scholars of the nation across the UP System are infuriated by the worsening deceit and corruption while the education sector continues to suffer from meager funding,” the UP Office of the Student Regent declared.

Councils and groups called on fellow students and the youth to participate en masse in the upcoming actions, especially in the Bilyon People March on September 21 at Luneta Park. This coincides with the commemoration of the 53rd anniversary of the declaration of Martial Law, a period of severe human rights violations, widespread corruption, and plunder by the Marcos family.