REACTION?

I swear, I am not an activist, I am not one of the so-called leftists, that barks at every move of the government.
I did not join any rally prior to this one.

But it really saddens me (infuriates me, rather) to see how people react badly at this issue. Why?

Have you ever tried walking down the halls of PGH?
Have you ever seen a patient,whose internal organ is exposed, waiting patiently in line, hoping to be admitted, at least before he passed out?
(PGH shares its budget with UP-Manila)

And yes. We walked out of class, we walked out of the comforts of our classroom. (if there is anything comfortable there).
Shouting, even if no one is listening; fighting even if there is no honor to be chased. We fight for our existence.

Who would want to go out in the sun, walking tirelessly, when we could just go home and sink to our books?
Who would want to shout when everything we say will be faced with a deafening silence?
Who would want to fight, when there's no reward to face after the war; when there's nothing but criticism at the end of the day?

But we did walk, we did shout, we did fight,

bearing in mind the days, when we are in our chemistry laboratories, recycling some used litmus paper;
in our biology classes, when we have to use some washed Wilkins bottles as an improvised spirometers;
in our history classes, a class of 40 students squeezes themselves inside a classroom that is smaller than your average CR.
in our libraries, where the newest book editions were the ones published 10 years ago.

Yes, we refuse to be silenced, but that is what school has been teaching us ever since- to fight for what we think is right.

Yes, we may have thrown away the times that should have been used to study/work. But we compensate for it. We are studying double the time, so we may prove our worth as your beneficiaries.
(In fact, I've stayed up the whole night trying to finish the reading assignments to compensate for the class hours that we've lost.) We study, we try to work it out, we've tried to improvise, Ipinagsisiksikan hangga't kaya. We babble, but we are working it out also.

By this, are we making ourselves some ingrateful bastards, who knows nothing 'bout to complain and shout on the streets?

Yes, we are privileged. UP has been the "University of the Privileged", but since when?
Budget cuts translates into TOFIs (Tuition and Other Fees Increase), and TOFIs translates into student population of those "privileged enough to pay".

We are destroying the country?! think.
If the studentry of the SUC's will be composed only of those who can pay, do you think the poor people, like me, will have any chance to chase for our dreams?
Did you think this country has any chance to alleviate its present condition?
We know nothing but to babble. maybe.

If you really think it's wrong to ask for more budget allocation for education, where would you rather place the budget from your taxes?

Look, please, look, at where the budget is going; where your money is going.
Yes, the army needs more guns and bullets than we need our books and classrooms.

It makes me sad. It really does.