KAPEKONOMIYA: PROBING THE UP LAND USE

Kapekonomiya, one of the most controversial educational discussions, weighed up the use and development of the land of the University of the Philippines last January 10, 2014 in the School of Economics Auditorium. The talk was facilitated by the UP School of Economics Student Council and the UP Economics Towards Consciousness to help students be aware of the perks and cost of this said topic. The speakers were Prof. Rupert Alonzo, Former Vice President for Development UP System and
Prof. Judy Taguiwalo, a former Faculty Regent and Professor at the College of Social Work and Community Development together with the student reactors, Alex Castro (Chairperson, University Student Council, UP Diliman) Darrelll Magsambol (Chairperson, UP Economics Student Council, UP Diliman) and, Krista Melgarejo (Student Regent, Board of Regents, UP System).  It basically circled around the two speakers. Sir. Alonzo discussed about the positive side of the privatization of some UP Land, providing laws and history on his slides while Prof. Taguiwalo, an activist who advocates several issues: academic freedom, human rights, and equality, argued and told the audience about the problems caused by these capitalists to UP students and the university itself.

It was said that private sector participation is nothing new for our university. Take for consideration the cafeterias in campus, from the UFS monopoly to private concessionaires in the shopping center where students can buy school supplies instead of going to Quiapo or Cubao.Land outside campus were also presented like the UP Basilan Land Grant that produced coconut and lumber plantation up to the 1980s which was sold under land reform program. Another land grant was the Laguna- Quezon Land Grant that logged with NDC up to 1980’s. The most popular privatized establishments today are the UP Ayala Technohub and the UP Town Center that originally designed to provide food services and printing offices to UP students. These said programs were established so that the school can focus on its mission and vision which is the pursuit of academic excellence.

But as opposed to the previous argument, I also want to point out that higher education is a public good, an item that is not decided by individual consumer but by the society as a whole and financed by taxation. The construction of Ayala Technohub and the Shopping Center and other non-academic buildings in the land area of the University of the Philippines-Diliman that constitutes about 493 hectares was acceptable for these institutions generate revenues for academic use. However, the UP Town Center was just out of purpose and it is not convenient to Iskos and Iskas but rather to other universities downtown. The University of the Philippines should have a greater use of these lands that focuses in academic rather than business. Once again, UP is a public property. It should not be privatized. The administration always says that these public investors give more income to the university but if it does so, why do students rally to scrap the STFAP? Why do we have to increase the tuition fees of the students if these companies are investing enough to provide profits and we are maximizing the use of the UP Land System? Based on the previous scandals regarding pork barrel, we are in the position to say that the government has a lot of money but at the same time we also have a lot of corrupt officials. So maybe the administration should think about all these factors before giving the burden to the students.