Militant groups on Saturday blamed the Aquino administration for the death of a graduating student of Central Bicol State University of Agriculture who committed suicide on Feb. 11 after losing his scholarship.
“The rotten education system in the country has claimed another life. Once again, the Aquino government stripped all hopes from a student and pushed him into the depths of despair leading him to his death,” the League of Filipino Students said in a statement.
Last Thursday, Jessiven Lagatic, a 4th year graduating student of BS Agriculture in CBSUA in Pili, Camarines Sur, took his own life after losing his scholarship and was forced to pay his school fees amounting to P7,000.
The LFS stated that even though Lagatic was studying in a public university, his family cannot afford to pay his college education, prompting his guardians to apply for the government’s Pantawid Pamilyang Pilipino Program.
The government approved the application and Lagatic was able to get a scholarship worth P10,000 per semester which bankrolled his tuition, boarding house, books, and uniform.
But last year, CBSUA Office of Student Affairs and Services notified that he will no longer be listed as one of 4Ps scholar since he failed some of his subjects. Lagatic pleaded for consideration but his appeals were disregarded, prompting his family to pay for his tuition to be able to enroll in the second semester of the academic year.
“Lagatic is a student in a state university but despite the supposed public character of his school, he still experienced difficulty paying for his education. It is revolting to see that even the state universities in our country do not provide the youth access to higher education,” the LFS said.
Lagatic’s suicide, according to LFS, is not the first time under the Aquino administration. It recalled the case of Kristel Tejada, a 1st year Behavioral Studies student from the University of the Philippines-Manila, who committed suicide in 2013.