Aliah Dimaporo Cimafranca kept herself busy taking photos of Marawi children, who were playing football, volleyball and parlor games under the care of teachers-volunteers from Mindanao State University.
Later in the day, she joined in distributing gift packs for hundreds of kids, who are temporarily sheltered, along with their family, at a school in Iligan City.
“This is so very different. It’s a relief operation with activities,” said Aliah, trying to hold her tears.
Aliah, as consultant for development programs for the Philippines Sports Commission, flew in to Iligan to observe the Children’s Games held for children evacuees, who were displaced by the fighting between the Maute terrorists and the military.
“I was tasked to help develop development programs that are sustainable and objective centered.”
The Children’s Games is one of centerpiece programs under the Philippine Sports Institute (PSI) headed by Mark Velasco as director of training.
It’s becoming very clear that under the young administration of President Rodrigo Duterte, the PSC is veering away from its traditional role of providing more focus on elite sports and putting more its efforts and resources to community sports.
PSC chairman William Ramirez had made himself clear that the agency’s mandate is not just to help a few, particularly the National Sports Associations, which send athletes to international competitions, but “we are bound to promote and make sports accessible to every Filipino.”
Duterte made himself clear when he dropped the bomb by withdrawing the country’s hosting of the 2019 Southeast Asian Games.
The government is expected to spend at least a billion pesos for the construction and rehabilitation of facilities to stage the biennial games. Traditionally, the host emerges as overall champions. The Philippines was overall king when it hosted the Games in 1991 and 2011.
PSC chairman Ramirez said the budget for the hosting will be re-routed to helping rehabilitate the war-devastated city of Marawi in Mindanao.
The PSC is also changing the game and putting more emphasis on going to the provinces for its community games through the Children’s Games.
“The mantra of the president is to make the sports accessible to the community. Sports is all about human development, not (just) about winning medals.”
The Children’s Games has a lot of faces.
In northern provinces, the PSC brought the Children’s Games to promote Filipino indigenous games and street games like sack race relay, kadang-kadang—simple games that teach discipline and team spirit.
When the Children’s Games was held in Davao City in May, most of those who participated were street children. Then in the next stop in Benguet, local players showcased their skills in tribal games like traditional wrestling.
Sergio Opena, PSC consultant in Davao City, said the Children’s Games are offered for adoption by the communities in Davao to promote peace among children.
There’s a plan to put children from different faiths and cultures like the Lumads, Christians and Muslims under one house where they can develop both their social and sports skills.
“WE can use sport as a universal tool, because whatever language they speak, sport speak a universal language that can be understood by everyone. Children still have less biases so it’s better to start the program with them.”
The Games’ unique features of holding games while providing life-changing results to children, was noticed by the United Nations Educational and Cultural Organization (UNESCO) and invited the PSC to share the program in its recent Ministerial Sports meeting in Kazan, Russia.
But for now, the children of Marawi are the PSC’s priority in Mindanao.
Henry Daut, a former professor at MSU, has been tasked by Ramirez to conduct follow-up programs.
“The first Games held for them was successful and we’re actually making the project a full-blown rehabilitation scheme for the children,” said Daut, who was the chief facilitator of first Children’s Games with the help of his former students and colleagues from MSU, led by Nenita Samung, Dean of College of Sports, Physical Education and Recreation.
She was also from Marawi and has been staying in Iligan until the situation normalizes at MSU campus, which is situated atop a hill, three kilometers from the Marawi City proper.
She said the Children’s games provided a therapeutic psychological experience for the children affected by the conflict.
“The children need more than just material things. With this activity, we were able to develop friendship among them.”
Daut is also making a coffee-table book to raise more global awareness and attract private donors for the needs of the children still living far from their homes.