PAGSANJAN, Laguna – The local government led by Pagsanjan Mayor “Kuya” Cesar V. Areza launched on Tuesday an “Alay Lakad” program with the theme “Callerunungan Education for Street Children, Aarangkada Tungo sa Rurok ng Tagumpay.”
A program of the Pagsanjan Municipal Social Welfare Development Office (MSWDO) led by Ms. Francisca Mondez, it aims to help street children gain adequate knowledge for life and educate children who have been neglected by their parents and those who cannot attend regular school lessons.
Part of the Pagsanjan program is the Persons with Disabilities Affairs Office (PDAO) led by Ms. Dorie Leron and Lory Lorelyn Daanoy Sagales.
According to Mayor Areza, the “Alay Lakad” is a reflection of his young life, noting that at a young age, he worked hard, saved, and put effort into life, so he reached where he is now.
“So, parents, take care of your children, don’t let them go on the street so that it does not ruin their lives. The government has a program to provide the protection they need, so your servant is ready to help you,” the mayor said.
Mondez said Callerunungan is a mobile learning program for street children who cannot study. They will be taught by a child development worker how to read, she said.
Their program has an obligation on the part of the parents; if they catch the child on the street, they will first counsel the parents, she said.
The second time the children are seen on the street again, they will be taken to MSWDO shelters, where they will be given psychosocial intervention. On the third time they are taken, these children will be brought to a proper institution where they will be taken care of, Mondez said.
Books were also distributed to children with help from sponsorships for the program. Roy Tomandao