Malacañang on Tuesday brushed off notions that the Department of Public Works and Highways’ (DPWH) has a higher budget compared to the Department of Education (DepEd).

Executive Secretary Lucas Bersamin said the administration of President Ferdinand R. Marcos Jr. complied with the constitutional requirement to prioritize the education sector.

Some quarters questioned the inclusion of the budgets of the Philippine National Police Academy (PNPA) and the Armed Forces of the Philippines (AFP) in the education sector.

This, in effect, made DPWH’s budget bigger compared to the education sector.

But in a press briefing in Malacañang, Bersamin explained the language of the Constitution is not specific, saying education must be looked at with a broader understanding.

“Before, the treatment was ang budget ng education was only that allocated to DepEd. That was the wisdom at that time,” Bersamin said.

“But then, so many things have happened. Iyong education responsibility has been shifted to other government agencies. So for everyone to claim na hindi mo dapat ibilang iyan sa education sector dahil nandoon sa PNP or iyong nandoon sa AFP – hindi maganda iyon, okay.”

Bersamin said DepEd is not the only agency in the education sector, but it has the greater portion of the education pie.

Other educational institutions include the Technical Education and Skills Development Authority (TESDA), State Universities and Colleges(SUCs) and the College of Higher Education (CHEd).

And if the PMA, PNPA and other offices with primary responsibility for education in their particular areas are to be included, that could adopt a bigger budget for the education sector, he said.

“So, the veto na ginawa ni Presidente doon sa DPWH was malaki ang education; na-comply iyong Constitution doon,” Bersamin explained. | PND