Imagine being a high school student studying in one of the most prestigious universities in the Philippines. It’s just a regular day in class. The air conditioning is on, the teacher is speaking in front, and you are simply jotting down whatever they are discussing—until a gunshot is heard from the distance. Students start screaming and panicking as they frantically run around, looking for an escape route. Some hide, some keep quiet. And this is exactly what happened at the Ateneo de Zamboanga University Junior High School. On Tuesday, August 18, 2026, a Grade 9 student entered the Ateneo de Zamboanga City High School, bringing one pistol and one rifle at approximately 7:50 AM. It was confirmed by the Department of Interior and Local Government (DILG) Secretary Jonvic Remulla that the act was livestreamed on social media. It was also confirmed that the student who committed the act later died by suicide, while another student died during the incident. In an interview with the reporters, Remulla stated that the ones responsible for the casualties are a Grade 9 student, who committed suicide, and the other one is Grade 10 student. Together with the Philippine National Police (PNP), it was later revealed that the firearms used belonged to the father of the Grade 9 student, who works under the Bureau of Customs (BOC). It is questionable how the weapons were brought within the premises of the school and how those students got access to them in the first place. It is also questionable where the parents of these students were before the shooting. If we continue to treat parenting as a joke and normalize parental negligence, we will only get more episodes of this series of school shootings. The first question that may pop up into mind is what the parents or guardians of these children are doing. Didn’t they know that their children have access to these kinds of items, or were they simply ignorant? They could’ve done something to prevent such a thing from happening, or they would’ve known where their children got these firearms if they were responsible parents. Others may argue that it is simply the influence of video games, similar to online games like Call of Duty or Valorant. But even if thousands of Filipino children play such games, only a few result in violence. The American Psychological Association (APA) once released a statement that it is not scientifically sound to link video games and violence. There are other environmental factors that may be affecting behavior other than playing video games. If they are supervised and disciplined properly, they wouldn’t commit such an act. Again, responsible parenthood. Article 15, Section 3 of the 1987 Philippine Constitution clearly states that a child is to be supervised and guided by a parent. Therefore, it is a parent’s obligation to assist their children as they grow. It really isn’t new to have ignorant parents in our society. People who leave their children undisciplined and without a sense of shame—who are arrogant enough to blame the situation on others rather than themselves and who will choose to blame the games rather than their poor parenting. The tragedy at Ateneo de Zamboanga is not a failure of school security or the fault of a video game—it is a wake-up call for the Filipino home. To all the parents out there, discipline your children and be present—for your actions will greatly affect others. We can blame the government, the security team of Ateneo, and the teachers, but it will never erase the fact that some parents simply failed. It is time to end this violent series before we watch another episode about a child with a gun and a home without guidance. — ms. kae 08.19.26

You’re a Filipino citizen—a taxpayer. Whether you are a student, unemployed, or a member of the labor force, you are a taxpayer of the Philippines. Because you pay the high demands of taxes, you expect it’ll be put to good use. Unfortunately for you, the country’s politicians are corrupt and selfish. Instead of serving the public using the collected funds, they spend them on themselves. Purchasing drugs here and there, treating their children to luxurious items, and maybe an umbrella paired with a Rolls-Royce. What a life, you thought. Disappointed at the government, you decided to protest in Manila—wanting to fight and speak out for your rights as a taxpayer. After all, the Philippines is a democratic country. But as soon as you arrive, the police stop you and everyone else, clashing with everyone. On Sunday, September 21, 2025, thousands gathered in Manila, Philippines, protesting over the government’s alleged mismanagement of flood projects. According to the Philippine National Police (PNP), more than a dozen people have been arrested. Until when are we going to protest against these corrupt politicians who do nothing but commit financial misconduct? As citizens and taxpayers, we must continue to demand accountability—for the betterment of the country and the future of the Filipino people. There have been countless cases of corruption in our country, dating back to the Spanish Colonial Period. Filipinos (at the time were called indios) were forced to pay tributo and bandala to allow the collection of public funds. They would work under Spanish Rule, only to continue suffering in poverty later on. According to the Encyclopedia Britannica, corruption intensified during the Marcos Regime from 1965 to 1986, when wealth and key industries were monopolized by family members and political allies, leading to the accumulation of massive foreign debt. Additionally, several flood control corruption scandals emerged in 2025, making thousands of Filipinos nationwide furious with the Philippine government. It was not only because of the misused funds, but also because of the consequences that are taking place. It is not the officials facing it, but thousands of Filipino families. Being a Filipino taxpayer really is a difficult life, especially when you know that your taxes could be used for better things. Not to mention, we are also supporting different programs, such as the subsidies for senior citizens and the 4Ps (Pantawid Pamilyang Pilipino Program). It isn’t bad to pay taxes at all because it is an obligation. But until when will we continue to shoulder the economy of the Philippines when no change or accountability has been served? As Mong Palatino, an activist in Manila, said, “...we are here to demand action from the government. We are here to demand accountability against corrupt officials in the government.” — ms. kae 08.20.26

Ironic. A word for sharp, surprising contrasts, yet it perfectly captures the glaring contradiction in our education system's policies. A news article released by the Philippine News Agency (PNA) stated that the Department of Education (DepEd) originally set nationwide active-threat drills on August 25, 2026. The drill aims to apply the lessons from recent school shooting issues in Tacloban and Zamboanga City. According to the article, the exercise will test how school personnel and learners will react when a human-induced threat unfolds, unlike conventional earthquake drills. For the past few months, the government, along with parents, has pointed fingers at video games, warning that digital environments like this desensitize our youth and fracture their mental well-being. Yet, in an astonishing twist of logic, DepEd recently attempted to combat the school shooting issues by simulating real-world violence and staging it in children’s classrooms. We censor screens to protect their minds and well-being, but we rehearse the nightmares in their hallways—subjecting them to hyper-realistic active attack simulations with complete mock terror. While DepEd’s recent postponement and softening of the drills became a welcome retreat, it does not change the fact that the drills were never needed in the first place in places where children are supposed to learn freely and without fear. If we want safer schools and educational institutions, responsible parents and stricter security measures must work together. The institution tasked with handling and protecting our children inadvertently exposes them to a far more toxic breed of violence than any video game ever could. A video game, for all its flaws, remains behind a screen—a chosen fiction with escapes or pauses. On the other hand, these drills offer no escapes and deeply embed the trauma of violence into their actual reality. We are not conditioning their safety, but creating trauma in disguise as one—forcing children to rehearse their own victimization in real life. Some may argue that DepEd removed these theatrics and implicitly acknowledged the irony; it is still clear that you cannot cure the threat of societal violence by institutionalizing it in classrooms. The fundamental flaw of the active-threat drills is the misplaced focus. The real antidote to the issue is far from school hallways—it begins at home and with proper security. Instead of forcing students to participate in these terrifying simulations, our resources must be funneled into proactive physical defenses, such as hardened perimeters and stricter campus access. Concurrently, true prevention requires responsible parenthood. Most youth-led security threats are preceded by severe behavioral shifts, deep isolation, or unsupervised digital radicalization—warning signs that can only be caught by active, engaged parents who monitor their children's mental well-being and secure real-world hazards at home. Safety and fear cannot coexist in a space dedicated to enlightenment and learning. If we are genuinely terrified of virtual pixels corrupting our youth, we must be doubly outraged by the state-sanctioned rehearsal of terror in real life. It’s time to stop training our nation’s children as victims of a broken society and start building a system that will protect them—helping them grow into our future leaders. But for now, as the drills are still ongoing, the thought remains ironic, doesn’t it? — ms. kae 09.02.26