The Department of Labor and Employment – Cordillera Administrative Region (DOLE-CAR) with the Baguio-Benguet Field Office (DOLE-BBFO) shares hope through the distribution of Project Angel Tree School Supplies for the profiled child laborers at the municipalities of Tuba and Tublay last September 05 and 07, 2022.

“Sikapin n’yong makatapos ng pag-aaral. Mas malayo ang inyong mararating and mas madami ang inyong mapapapala sa buhay, basta mag sumikap kayong mag-aral,” noted DOLE-CAR Regional Director Nathaniel V. Lacambra CESO III, during the distribution at the Taloy Sur Barangay Hall, Taloy Sur, Tuba, Benguet.  He emphasized that education and effort are the pillars to which a successful and healthy society stands on.

The fifty-nine (59) Project Angel Tree donees expressed their gratitude for the bags with school supplies they received from the charitable donor-partners of the Child Labor Prevention and Elimination Program (CLPEP) team. Before ending the program, Hon. Punong Barangay Sibayan A. Juan, and Office of the Municipal Mayor Clarita P. Sal-ongan representative Ms. Shelly Lois A. Padosen similarly encouraged the children to focus and strive with their studies rather than work.

   

Twenty three beneficiaries likewise received their bags with school supplies at the Covered court of Tublay Municipal Hall, Tublay Benguet. The event was graced by Tublay Municipal Mayor Hon. Armando I. Lauro, newly appointed DOLE-CAR Asst. Reg’l Dir. Emerito A. Narag, PhD., DOLE-Baguio-Benguet Field Office (DOLE-BBFO) Head Atty. Marina P. Cayabo, and Indigenous People Mandatory Representative (IPMR) Florence Albis.

The Project Angel Tree distribution coincided with the DOLE Integrated Livelihood Program Turnover for two livelihood group beneficiaries in the same municipality.

One of the Project Angel Tree beneficiaries is “Chuck” (not his real name), 15 years old, and resident of Tublay. He works as a farmer/soil cultivator in a flower field, where he gets cuts, is exposed to chemical fertilizers and insecticides, and spend most of his time under the sweltering sun.

He mentioned that he and his cousins (who are also profiled beneficiaries), will benefit from the school supplies provided, because these materials have become more expensive recently. Chuck and his companions conveyed their thankfulness for the assistance provided to them.

It is the hope of the Department to fully remove these children from child labor toward a better future.

Proper education and character inculcation are the foundation upon which we build the youth’s future – and by equipping the children with good teachings, we share toward that vision a clearer, more secure hope.

 

end//Daryll B. Ponard
LEO III-FNLI