Cebu stude-leaders appeal for tertiary FTF class halt amid unhealthy air quality

Collegiate-level student leaders from different universities in Cebu City appealed before the city mayor for a tertiary face-to-face class suspension from September 7-8, on both public and private schools as Cebu’s air quality persisted to stay at “very unhealthy” levels.

In a Facebook post, student leaders from the University of San Carlos (USC), University of San Jose-Recoletos (USJ-R), and Cebu Normal University (CNU) have appeared before Cebu City Mayor Nestor Archival, together with their formal letter.

Student leaders from Southwestern University PHINMA (SWU) and Cebu Institute of Technology-University (CIT-U) also expressed their support for the appeal. 

The proponents emphasized that students’ safety and welfare should remain a priority, regardless of their educational level or institution.

“We believe that environmental and health risks do not distinguish by educational level, and the physical safety and well-being of college students must never be treated as an afterthought,” John Tyler Calderon of USC said in a Facebook post.

They also urged Environmental Management Bureau Region VII (EMB-7) and Department of Health Region 7 (DOH-7) to act urgently and issue data-driven recommendations to the city government for a suspension to be pushed.

On Sunday night, September 6, Archival announced on social media an extension of face-to-face class suspension for September 7, solely for Basic Education levels, covering kindergarten to senior high school, in both public and private schools. 

As of press writing, the City Mayor has yet to release a statement regarding a suspension for  the tertiary level.

Other tertiary institutions have also called to their respective administrators for a suspension of face-to-face classes.

According to the EMB-7, Metro Cebu has remained to a “very unhealthy” level, with its recorded Air Quality Index of 158 as of 7 a.m., September 7. 

The unhealthy air quality stemmed from the transboundary haze of the neighboring country Indonesia.