Children should not be compromised by budget cuts. Schools should have enough guidance counselors, nurses, and support personnel.

By Elisha Beatrice Umali 

LAGUNA – Children and teachers’ advocacy groups criticized institutional failure in the wake of the August 18 shooting incident at the Ateneo de Zamboanga University (AdZU), Zamboanga City that left two dead, including the shooter. 

An initial report from the Philippine National Police (PNP) identified the alleged shooter as a  Grade 9 student of the Ateneo de Zamboanga University (AdZU). The victim was a Grade 10 student of the same school. Both fatalities were minors.

ACT Teachers Partylist Rep. Antonio Tinio raised questions as to how the shooter gained access to a gun, where it came from, and who is responsible for keeping the weapon.

Tinio also demanded for a House investigation with regard to school violence after the Zamboanga City shooting. “Children should not be compromised by budget cuts. Schools should have enough guidance counselors, nurses, and support personnel,” he said in Filipino.

Salinlahi Alliance for Children’s Concerns stated that this shooting is an “undeniable manifestation of the rapidly collapsing state of children’s welfare in the country.” The children’s alliance also criticized the current administration’s lack of preemptive measures against school shootings. 

“The children are not at fault, it is the rotten system who is at fault. Instead of proposing comprehensive and pro-people solutions for children’s rights, the government chooses to point fingers at the victims while neglecting their duties,” said Salinlahi Secretary General Elle Buntag in Filipino. 

For her part, Alliance of Concerned Teachers Philippines (ACT) Chairperson Ruby Bernardo decried Presidential Communications’ Office Undersecretary Claire Castro calling teachers as “the ones teaching ill manners to students.” 

“Our elected officials, including those in the Malacañang, should be the models [of right conduct] but the public only see them committing corrupt practices, stealing funds and evading accountability,” Bernardo said in Filipino. She stressed that the government should be examples for the youth.

Buntag also criticized Castro’s statement. “Teachers keep our education system alive despite hunger and their measly salaries, then you go around and evade responsibility over your own institutional failure? Do not make teachers the punching bags of your negligence.” 

Kabataan Partylist said that since June 2026, there have been five reported cases of school violence in the country. “These are manifestations of the lack of support and protection provided to the youth in terms of mental health services, economic support, and accessible and quality education.”

In a statement, the Commission on Human Rights said that these incidents require a nuanced view on juvenile justice and child protection. “A rights-based juvenile system holds children accountable in ways appropriate to their age and development, while recognizing that children involved in violence may themselves require protection and intervention.” (AMU, DAA)