BAYOMBONG, Nueva Vizcaya—Born with incomplete limbs, Marlon Suni used a bicycle with a sidecar as he studied at Careb Elementary School and Murong National High School in Bagabag town where he was born.
Often tired, he was pulled by his friends’ bicycles as they went to school. Suni was constantly bullied, yet he did not crack and carried on.
“I just let the bullying pass through my ears and kept on studying,” Suni recalled while inside the Provincial General Services Office of the provincial government here, where he now works as an administrative aide.
Suni, 40, along with fellow persons with disabilities—Roy Bacolod, 39, of Barangay Poblacion in Aritao town and Jerry Limboc, 43 of barangay Roxas in Solano town—became members of the Provincial Federation of PWD Associations Inc. in the early 1990s.
Suni was hired at the PGSO after earning his Bachelor of Science in Elementary Education, major in General Science at the PLT College here.
Bacolod, who finished a Desktop Publishing course at the Vizcaya Institute of Computer Science, is with the Provincial Engineering Office, and Limboc, a Bachelor of Science in Commerce major in computer systems graduate at St. Mary’s University, is with the Provincial Social Welfare and Development Office, also as administrative aid.
“It was a tough journey, but with patience, perseverance, commitment and dedication, we made it. Our gratitude goes to our Provincial Capitol family, specially to Gov. Carlos Padilla and former governor Ruth Padilla,” said Suni, who was a scholar of the Nueva Vizcaya Press Club.
Suni, Bacolod and Limboc also owe their jobs to livelihood opportunities given by the provincial government to the PWD Federation in the ’90s. These include the PWD Canteen, tea house, boating lagoon, and bike rentals as initial business ventures.
They were part of the PFPWDAI members who took vocational courses on Canteen Management from the Area Vocational Rehabilitation Center in Dagupan City.
Local tourists and villagers who visit the provincial capitol to avail of their services provide income for the PWD workers.
Inspired by their unwavering business interest, the provincial government has maintained its ties with the PWD federations through several administrations.
“With our canteen, many of the employees of the provincial government were then availing of our meals daily, to be paid in full by the end of the month,” Suni said.
At present, the PWD group claims a membership of more than 1,000 provincewide through their municipal chapters in the 15 towns of Nueva Vizcaya.
Through collaboration with agencies such as the Technical Skills and Development Authority, Department of Labor and Employment, Department of Science and Technology, and the Department of Trade and Industry along with the provincial government, many of the PFPWD members also started their own ventures to earn for their families.
In many instances, PWDs in the municipalities were honored for their productive contributions in their respective communities from national government agencies and private organizations in the country.
Governor Padilla also vowed more assistance for the PWD group members in terms of livelihood and employment opportunities at the provincial government.
In fact, some PFPWD members were recently trained in boat fabrication at the Lower Magat Eco-Tourism Park in barangay San Luis in Diadi town, funded by the provincial government and the Bureau of Fisheries and Aquatic Resources.
The materials for the fabrication of fiberglass boats were donated by the SN Aboitiz Power Magat, which also donated the five boats made by the PWDs.
“This is part of their preparation to operate and manage the boating and fishing lagoon at the LMETP as additional source of PFPWD members’ income. We have many plans for them to be more empowered so that they can help others to improve their lives,” Padilla said.