I join millions in mourning for the death of the UP Manila student who reportedly committed suicide after being forced to file a leave of absence (LOA) from the university for having no money to pay her tuition this semester. I heard that UP Manila has a "no late-payment" policy where students are advised to file LOA if deadline of payment of tuition is not met.
This deplorable death serves as proof that a lot remains to be done in bringing down the cost of education in the country.
We know that quality education comes at a high cost. But we also believe that the government has the constitutional and moral duty to educate its people – this is why we have been saying that the government should increase its spending for education and make concrete steps to offer free college level education for poor but deserving students.
Our universities and colleges should show more compassion to students facing financial difficulties by taking more aggressive steps to reach out to these students and offering assistance such as conditional scholarships, student loans, or in-campus jobs to help ease their financial and psychological burdens.
Let us pray that we will all learn from this experience so that a loss of another bright mind will not be for naught.
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