UP STUDENTS, FACULTY STAGE BIGGEST WALKOUT SINCE PANDEMIC OVER CORRUPTION, BUDGET CUTS
Thousands of students, faculty, and staff across the University of the Philippines (UP) system staged simultaneous walkouts on Friday, September 12, to protest what they described as rampant government corruption and worsening education budget cuts.
In UP Diliman, more than 3,000 constituents converged at the AS Steps after holding local actions in different colleges, in what the Philippine Collegian called the largest walkout since the pandemic. Protesters condemned widespread corruption and decried substandard infrastructure and services resulting from budget cuts.
At UP Manila, over 600 students and faculty members also walked out of classes and occupied the College of Arts and Sciences grounds, marking the biggest mobilization there since the pandemic, according to The Manila Collegian.
Meanwhile, in UP Tacloban, UP Vista Online reported that students launched their own "Black Friday Protest" led by the UP Tacloban Student Council and Pulso han Mag-aaram.
The Office of the Student Regent earlier urged students to join the protests under the call, "Tama na! Sobra na! Iskolar ng Bayan, walkout na!"