14/09/2025
Shackled by Corruption: The Silent Cry of Teachers
The picture shows a weary teacher chained to her desk, perspiring as she tries to juggle the weight of taxes, students' work, and an endless amount of paperwork, additional workload and family life. Crocodiles, horrible symbols of corruption, are hiding behind her, consuming books, cash, and educational supplies. On a barred window, an ominous sign that reads "Corruption" serves as a reminder that the light of progress is trapped behind the greed of those power.
The reality of many Filipino educators is reflected in this picture. Teachers, who are regarded as the country's "second parents," devote their entire lives to shaping the next generation, which is seen as the hope for the future. They continue to show up in classrooms that are frequently overcrowded, underfunded, and forgotten, spend restless nights checking outputs, and prepare lessons despite having few resources. However, the very system that ought to be empowering them shackles them in spite of their sacrifices. Their workloads are increased, their benefits are delayed, and their salaries are subject to constant taxes.
It is painfully ironic that while teachers make do with meager pay, politicians, lawmakers and contractors shamelessly embezzle billions from the country's resources. Instead, funds that could have been used to create safer classrooms, hire more teachers, lower class sizes, or provide sufficient learning resources are sucked up by corruption's insatiable appetite. Every peso that is stolen is a classroom unbuilt, a textbook unwritten and a child’s potential unfulfilled.
It is impossible to overstate the emotional toll that this injustice has taken. An entire profession's frustration and discouragement are embodied in the image's worn-out teacher. It poses a terrifying query: how can educators inspire hope to the young people when the very leaders of this nation are robbing that hope from its foundation? The crocodiles in the background represent not only corruption but also the mockery of justice, with politicians living in luxury and teachers begging for supplies like bond papers, printers, ink, classroom chairs and the like. Those hundreds of thousands politicians spent on a single meal could have been used to pave school grounds where learners walk safely or perhaps used to tile the classroom floors. Those billions of pesos squandered could have been used to build sports facilities or ended the the never-ending issues of PTA contributions for TVs and electric fans.
This fact compels us to face an unsettling reality: the nation's leaders' moral bankruptcy, not a lack of commitment from educators, is the biggest obstacle to its progress. The government has failed; teachers are doing their share and more. Thus, we come to the question: is there hope for this nation? It's a bittersweet answer. There is hope, but not in the corridors of power, where crocodiles thrive. It can be found in educators' resilience, in their refusal to give up on their learners in the face of systemic betrayal. The public's outrage, which calls for accountability, and the youth's education, which teaches them to view corruption not as normal but as a disease to be eradicated.
Yes, there is hope, but only if we decide to fight for it. Until corruption is addressed and teachers, the unsung heroes of this country, are finally given the dignity, respect, and support they so richly deserve, hope will remain a meaningless word.
