MANILA — President Ferdinand R. Marcos Jr. assured that ghost projects and substandard classrooms will be prevented under the newly signed Memorandum of Agreement (MOA) between the Department of Education (DepEd) and local government units (LGUs) to accelerate classroom construction nationwide.

Speaking during the ceremonial signing at Malacañan Palace, President Marcos said the setup holds LGU officials directly accountable to their communities, reducing the risk of poorly executed projects.

“Ang sabi ko nga sa kanila, sa lahat, eh sabi ko, papaano ‘yan baka magkaproblema ulit sa ghost project at saka sa substandard? Ang sabi ko, hindi uubra ‘yan pagka sa LGU. Hindi uubra ‘yan dahil ang tao mismo ang kaharap ninyo,” President Marcos said.

“Pagka hindi maganda ang gawin ninyong trabaho, sisitahin kayo. Araw-araw kayong – gabi-gabi kayong kakatukin sa bahay ninyo, sasabihin, ayusin ninyo ‘yung problema. Kaya’t malakas ang loob ko na magiging maayos lahat ng ating gagawin,” he added.

Under the agreement, DepEd will provide funding, technical standards, and classroom designs, while LGUs will handle procurement and actual construction. The government has allocated PhP9.6 billion to build around 4,000 new classrooms nationwide.

President Marcos said the arrangement allows LGUs to receive funds directly from the national government, enabling faster implementation and reducing delays compared with channeling money through national agencies.

“By giving the LGUs greater role in the implementation, we streamline the process. We reduce delays, and move faster in building schools that our children need,” he said.

The agreement is part of the Marcos administration’s effort to address the country’s classroom shortage, which the President said has reached 145,000 as of December 2025.