PRESS RELEASE

ACT Teachers Party-list Rep. Antonio Tinio 22 April 2026

Tinio files House Resolution 921 seeking probe on non-use of P200M Legal Defense Fund for teachers, education support personnel facing cases

House Deputy Minority Leader and ACT Teachers Party-list Representative Antonio Tinio filed House Resolution No. 921 urging an investigation, in aid of legislation, into the continued non-utilization of the Legal Defense Fund (LDF) intended to protect public school teachers and education support personnel (ESP) who face administrative, civil, or criminal cases arising from the performance of their official duties.

The annual General Appropriations Acts allocate a P200 million lump sum Legal Defense Fund under the Miscellaneous Personnel Benefits Fund (MPBF). Under existing DBM guidelines—National Budget Circular (NBC) 566 (2016) and NBC 582 (2020)—the fund can cover actual legal defense expenses such as bond premiums, transportation, photocopying, counsel fees, and appearance fees, subject to set limits and eligibility rules.

“What is scandalous is that the fund exists, the guidelines exist, and yet most teachers and education support personnel are still forced to shoulder legal costs out of pocket,” Tinio said. “The LDF was created precisely to protect frontline workers, but it remains effectively inaccessible because many agencies failed to do the most basic requirements—create Claims Boards, issue internal guidelines, and inform employees.”

“Umiiral ang pondo pero hindi napapakinabangan ng mga guro,” Tinio said. “Pinapabayaran pa rin sa kanila ang abugado, piyansa, at iba pang gastos kapag sinasampahan o tinatakot silang sasampahan ng kaso dahil sa trabaho nila.”

Tinio cited initial compliance checks showing that only a few agencies have established Claims Boards and issued internal guidelines to operationalize the LDF. He said major agencies with the largest number of civilian personnel—particularly the Department of Education (DepEd) and the Department of Health (DOH)—have lagged behind, leaving hundreds of thousands of public servants without practical access to legal assistance.

“DepEd itself admitted in a House hearing that it has yet to issue the necessary policy to implement the LDF for its employees,” Tinio said. “That admission explains the daily reality on the ground: teachers get threatened with cases, especially child abuse-related complaints under RA 7610 linked to classroom discipline, and many are left alone to fend for themselves.”

“Hindi dapat normal ang pag-iisa ng guro kapag may kasong kaugnay sa pagtuturo,” Tinio added. “Karapatan nilang maprotektahan ng gobyerno, lalo’t may nakalaan na ngang Legal Defense Fund.”

Tinio said HR 921 seeks to determine accountability for the failure to operationalize the LDF across agencies, identify bottlenecks in implementation, and craft legislation to ensure that the LDF becomes real protection—especially for rank-and-file employees delivering frontline services.

“The goal is simple: make the Legal Defense Fund work for the people it was intended for,” Tinio said. “We need clear obligations, timelines, reporting requirements, and penalties for non-compliance, so teachers and other frontline workers stop paying the price for government inaction.” ###