Problems with illegal or sky-rocketing fees, poor facilities and other enrolment-related issues? Contact the “˜Kabataan Balik-Eskwela Hotlines.’

“We want to provide hotlines and means for students, parents and even our teachers where they can forward their complaints on unnecessary and exorbitant fees, poor facilities, and other enrolment and school-opening related issues,” said Kabataan Party-list Rep. Mong Palatino.

“The complaints we will gather will be collated, investigated and be brought to concerned agencies for them to immediately address. This is our way of empowering our students by giving them venues to air their concerns this school opening,” Palatino said.

For reports, complaints and concerns, students may contact the Kabataan Balik-Eskwela Hotlines at 09192865175, 09236410117 and 09151883494. Parties may also upload complaints, photos, videos and other multimedia at www.kabataanpartylist.com/hotline or email them to kabataanhotline@gmail.com.

Palatino said that response to the Hotlines is overwhelming. “Barely a few hours since we went online, we have already received a steady stream of complaints from concerned students.”

Among these, he said, are complaints from public high school students on unexplained miscellaneous fees:

Payatas High School (Judge Cecilia Munoz Palma HS): PTA Fee -P150, ID Fee -P60, Test Paper Fee -P20, Red Cross Fee-P40, School Publication Fee -P90, S.O. Fee -P50, Step Fee -P30, or a total of P440

Culiat High School: PTA-P470 summer classes fees of P990, or a total of P1,460

Quirino High School: P140 per workbook, P100 Red Cross Fee, P10 per Numbo Card, or a total of P250

UP Integrated School: PTA Fee-P1,000, Work books/instructional materials fees-P1,072, Guidance Fee-P60 and for incoming Grade 10 students’ Alumni Fee for Grade 10 students- 300 and Graduation Fee -P2,000, or a total of P2,132 to P4,432

New Era Public High School: PTA and other fees-P400

“Some of the fees are highly questionable, what is a Step Fee or Test Paper Fee for? Some fees, on the other hand, have long been ordered non-compulsory by the DepEd, such as PTA Fees and Graduation Fees. In fact, didn’t the DepEd specifically order public high schools last March to refrain from charging graduation-related fees?” Palatino said.

Palatino said that he will bring the complaints to Congress and file a resolution urging the DepEd to investigate and stop fee impositions in public schools. “We urge more students and parents to utilize our hotlines. We are also planning to go around public schools and universities to inspect enrolment processes and facilities,” Palatino announced.