The very first day of the 2023 academic year on August 29 can be remembered as the time when a looming dread plagued the halls of Pamantasan, and among its students brought forth confusion and worry as to the unclear status of the University's eligibility for the Unified Financial Assistance System for Tertiary Education (UniFAST), or the Free Tertiary Education law. This was based on an online post that went viral referring to a memorandum issued by the Commission of Higher Education (CHED) in which PLM will be delisted as a beneficiary due to its University President lacking a doctorate degree among other reasons.  

The First Day Fight may then be described as an eventful date that largely differs from last year's.

For one, there was the 'elephant in the campus'  pertaining to what the faculty, staff, and especially the students all have in mind to be addressed in the opening remarks of the University administration; a protest and a snake rally by various campus-based NDMOs was held inside PLM to call for student demands; and an immediate dialogue between student leaders and the administration were conducted. To add, there was also the issue on scarcity of conducive classrooms to cater to the university's growing student population. 


Photos by Dean Palapar | Ang Pamantasan