Various groups and education stakeholders on Tuesday, Sept. 7, issued a five-point demand to the national government as another school year starts under the imposition of distance learning.

"The President has rejected at least three times the proposals to reopen schools in areas considered to be at low-risk for a COVID-19 outbreak, without providing a clear roadmap on how and when it plans to do so," the groups said in a statement.

The groups hit Duterte's failure to provide the requisites for the safe delivery of accessible quality o education amid the pandemic.

"Millions of youth and education workers will be again subjected to under-supported and onerous distance learning amidst the ranging pandemic and worsening economic crisis," they added.

According to the United Nations Children's Fund (UNICEF), the Philippines is one of the five countries in the world that have not started in-person classes since the pandemic began.

School closures have affected over 27 million students.

The Duterte administration is urged to roll out a clear plan for the immediate safe conduct of limited and voluntary in-classroom learning in low-risk areas; provide the needed teaching and learning resources for distance learning; ensure the provision of health protection and payment of just benefits to education workers; allocate higher budget to education in 2022; and implement genuine academic ease.

The groups also urged to ramp up the vaccination of teacher and education support personnel and grant P1,500 monthly Internet allowance to teachers and Internet subsidy to learners in need.

The unity statement is signed by the National Union of Students of the Philippines, NNARA-Youth, Alliance of Concerned Teachers, Coalition for People's Right to Health, Amihan, Gabriela-Marikina, Salinlahi, Kabataan, and Kabataan Partylist.