For Parañaque City 2nd district Rep. Brian Yamsuan, a student's right to participate in his or her graduation march is sacred.

As such, Yamsuan recently filed House Bill (HB) No. 8618, which sought to get rid of the schools' practice of banning students with unpaid financial or property obligations from taking part in their graduation ceremonies.

Through his measure, the lawmaker wants to ensure that all students get to celebrate their academic milestones regardless of their status in life.

“Ang edukasyon ang siyang tumatayong pag-asa para sa maraming naghihikahos na pamilyang Pilipino. Kaya naman maraming magulang ang nagsasakripisyo para lamang matiyak na maka-graduate ang kanilang mga anak," he said.

(Education has stood as a symbol of hope for many struggling Filipino families. That’s why many parents make sacrifices just to ensure that their children graduate.)

"In preserving the significance of a graduation ceremony, we recognize the perseverance not only of our students but also of the families that have placed their hope in education. That hope, on the sole account of poverty or economic hardships, should not be taken away,” Yamsuan said.

While HB 8618 prohibits educational institutions from preventing students who have completed all academic requirements from taking part in their graduation ceremony due to unsettled obligations, the measure also recognizes the right of these institutions to collect unpaid tuition and other fees.  

The bill covers all public and private basic education (K-12) schools, higher educational institutions, and technical-vocational institutions offering long-term courses exceeding one year.

Yamsuan said that to ensure that mechanisms are in place to correctly identify financially deprived graduates, the social welfare and development officer of the local government unit (LGU) or the regional officer of the Department of Social Welfare and Development (DSWD) shall issue the necessary certificates on the disadvantaged status of students due to calamities, emergencies, force majeure and other justifiable reasons.

“For many students and their parents, a graduation ceremony  is more than just a formal rite. It  is the most tangible symbol of a hope fulfilled. Barring them from taking part in graduation or commencement exercises solely due to unpaid obligations deny them the opportunity to witness, with dignity, the fruits of their sacrifices,” he said.

To ensure that schools would be able to collect unpaid obligations, the bill allows them to withhold the release of the actual diploma and/or other academic documents of the graduating student until all fees are paid by the latter. 

Educational institutions may also require the submission of a promissory note, withhold records and credentials of students and such other legal and administrative remedies available to them for the collection of unpaid fees. 

Under the bill, all covered public and private educational institutions found guilty of violating the prohibition shall face administrative sanctions that may be imposed by the Department of Education (DepEd), Commission on Higher Education (CHEd), and Technical Education and Skills Development Authority (TESDA), as the case may be.