A group of Camarines Sur legislators sought the congressional approval of a bill establishing libraries and reading centers in every city, town and barangay, and another measure upgrading the book rooms in all elementary and high schools, as well as in colleges and universities nationwide.
The legislators said that House Bill (HB) 1798, once enacted, shall amend Republic Act 7743 by putting up public libraries in all provinces, cities and towns, as well as reading centers in barangays throughout the country that still do not have such book rooms.
Camarines Sur Reps. Luis Raymund Villafuerte, Miguel Luis Villafuerte and Tsuyoshi Anthony Horibata, along with the Bicol Saro party-list Rep. Bryan Yamsuan authored the bill. They said the measure aligns with the constitutional mandate of the State to make quality education accessible to all Filipinos.
Under HB 1798, all cities and towns shall eventually be provided with electronically-operated library systems, said Villafuerte.
The same lawmakers seek in HB 3687 the establishment of a Division of Library Media Services in both the Bureaus of Elementary Education (BEE) and of Secondary Education (BSE) of the Department of Education (DepEd) and in the Bureau of Higher Education (BHE).
These bureaus are, under HB 3687, to partner with other stakeholders in designing curriculum-based instructional activities for students to access a broad diversity of information, and to encourage them and their teachers to use and share information on advanced technology.
Villafuerte sought swift congressional action on both bills, which, he said, put flesh into Article 14, Section 1 of our Constitution that mandates the State to protect and promote the right of all Filipino citizens to quality education at all levels and to take appropriate steps to make such education accessible to all.
“To prepare young Filipinos for the challenges of the future, as well as keep our economy competitive, there should be provincial, city and municipal public libraries as well as barangay reading centers in all places nationwide that still do not have such facilities, and every elementary, secondary and tertiary school in the Philippines must be equipped with up-to-date library resources, certified library media specialists, access to advanced technology, and proper instruction on the use of library and information resources,” he said.
Villafuerte said HB 1798 intends to strengthen RA 7743, otherwise known as “An Act Providing for the Establishment of Provincial, City, and Municipal Libraries and Barangay Reading Center throughout the Philippines,” and help fully realize the intent of this law in coordination with the Department of the Interior and Local Government (DILG).