Pampanga First District Representative Carmelo “Pogi” Lazatin, Jr., has filed a bill mandating the establishment of the Philippine Online Library and the digitization of prescribed references for public education.
Under House Bill No. 4356, to be known as the “Establishing the Philippine Online Library and Digitization of Public School References Act,” the Department of Education (DepEd), in coordination with the National Library of the Philippines (NLP), shall be responsible for the creation of digitized copies of all prescribed textbooks and essential reference materials for each level in elementary and secondary school.
The digitized copies of textbooks and reference materials will be made available through a national online library that shall be managed jointly by the NLP and the Department of Information and Communications Technology (DICT).
The Philippine Online Library shall be accessible to the public for free through an online platform that may be accessed by students with internet access.
The DepEd projects that for school year 2025 to 2026, there are about 27.6 million enrollees in basic education.
But a report prepared by the Congressional Committee on Education stated that from 2012 to 2022, only Grades Five and Six have complete textbooks.
“This data suggests that for the past decade, the Philippine education system has been struggling since our young learners in public schools have been sharing textbooks,” Lazatin said.
“The digitization of textbooks and other essential references, and making it freely available online, will give more students access to the learning materials that they need,” the solon added. “We shouldn’t gatekeep knowledge; it should be made available to anyone who wants to learn.”
The Philippine Online Library is envisioned as a means to bridge the gap in the learning resources, where learners may be able to access a whole range of materials in their own spaces or homes.
During his term as city mayor, Lazatin said he ordered the renovation of the three-storey Angeles City Library and Information Center (ACLIC) into a modernized, state-of-the-art facility.
The ACLIC, which was inaugurated on March 19, 2024, boasts of a wide range of resources, spacious reading areas, and computer working stations
As congressman, Lazatin said he will request P200 million to fund the construction of computer labs in 19 public high schools in the First District in 2026.
Under the project, state-of-the-art computer laboratories will be constructed in six public high schools in Magalang town, 12 public high schools in Mabalacat City, and one in Francisco G. Nepomuceno Memorial High School (FGNMHS) in Angeles City.
Each laboratory will be equipped with 50 computers with five printers for every 10 computers; two air-conditioners; and one 55-inch smart TV.