PASAY CITY—The Senate of the Philippines took immediate action on August 24, targeting the disturbing surge in school violence and expanding safeguards for children both on campus and online. 

Lawmakers actively tackled crucial measures, including the upcoming sponsorship of the proposed School Safety Act to combat campus bullying, debates on stricter anti-child online sexual abuse legislation, and the expansion of the national child nutrition program.  

Addressing recent violent campus incidents in Tacloban City and Zamboanga City, Senate President Win Gatchalian cautioned against the potential mental health risks of holding active-shooter simulations in academic institutions. 

Following these concerns, the Department of Education (DepEd) deferred its planned nationwide live-shooter drills. 

Expressing support for a careful review of the safety exercises, Gatchalian emphasized, "Dapat pong mapag-aralang mabuti."  

Basic Education Committee Chairperson Sen. Bam Aquino urged his colleagues to accelerate the passage of the School Safety Act, advocating for a whole-of-nation framework that unites government agencies, educators, and families. 

Highlighting the complexity of campus violence, Aquino urged, "It takes a community to raise a child. It also takes multiple bills and reforms to address this issue."  

Senate Minority Leader Alan Peter Cayetano raised critical psychological concerns, urging the government to get to the root cause of student violence rather than relying on poorly planned responses that could inflict further trauma. 

He proposed running community town halls with teachers, parents, mental health experts, and spiritual leaders while DepEd reviews active attack protocols, pointing out, “Let’s find the cancer, what is moving the students to this.”

Turning to student welfare, Sen. Raffy Tulfo pushed to expand the national school feeding program to cover every learner from Kindergarten to Grade 6, arguing that universal coverage eliminates social stigma and guarantees nutrition for all. 

Pushing for an inclusive approach during plenary debates on Senate Bill No. 2272, Tulfo stated, “Hindi ba mas maganda na across the board, basta estudyante ka sa school na ‘yan, from Kindergarten hanggang sa Grade 6, libreng pagkain na lang.”

‍