Archival vows special attention to day-care centers

CEBU, Philippines — Cebu City Mayor-elect Archival pledged to give special attention to day-care centers in the city once he formally takes office, taking note the importance of nurturing children.

Speaking before 280 day-care workers from 80 barangays during the observance of Child Development Week Workers 2025 organized by the Department of Social Welfare and Services earlier this week in City Hall, Archival assured them of his commitment to improving the city's early childhood education system.

As he vows to take care of the City’s day-care Centers, he encouraged workers/educators to also seek more ways to enhance their teaching methods and improve the overall quality of care in the centers.

“We need to do more. Ang akong request ninyo is to find solutions on how to improve the things we’re doing. Ang key g’yud sa pag succeed og unsay atong pagabuhaton is the term improvement,” he said.

Meanwhile, the city’s PIO reported that the Local School Board will distribute the surplus school kits from previous distributions to those going to day-care centers in different barangays here.

Each kit includes notebooks, ballpens, pencils, and a school bag.

In another development, the Department of Education-Central Visayas is set to receive over 2,300 smart TVs from its central office for selected public schools.

Thousands of schools in the country including Central Visayas are set to receive necessary equipment months ahead of schedule.

Aside from the tech equipment, DepEd is also speeding up the distribution of textbooks aligned with the revised K to 10 curriculum. Titles for Grades 1, 4, and 7 are 99% procured, while progress for Grades 2, 5, and 8 is nearing halfway and books for Grades 6, 9, and 10 will follow later this year, with distribution scheduled for 2026.

Mandaue parolees Join Brigada

Mandaue City parolees and probationers joined this year’s Brigada Eskwela in Mandaue City, in preparation for the opening of academic year 2025-2026 on Monday, June 16.

The Brigada Eskwela 2025 lasted for five days from Monday, June 9 until Friday, June 13.

This initiative is led by Mandaue City Parole and Probation Office (MCPPO) as part of the parolees’ and probationers’ terms and conditions to undergo community service.

Parolees and probationers are individuals who have been convicted of a crime but are allowed to serve their sentences in the community under supervision --parolees after being released early from prison, and probationers instead of being incarcerated.

The MCPPO covers the municipalities of Liloan, Compostela, Consolacion, and the Mandaue City itself, according to officer Santos Jumao-as of MCPPO.

“Kinatibuk-an, 4,000 ni sila niya amoa lang itagi-tagi. I-schedule namo, i-distribute namo ang mga clients (parolees and probationers) nato unya kung kita magpahigayon og kalihokan, sama niini karon,” said Jumao-as.

One of the major recipients of the program this year is the Mandaue City Central School, where 500 parolees and probationers have been assigned to assist in campus cleanup and preparations.

Jumao-as said there are also parolees and probationers from different places such as Mindanao, who came to work in Mandaue but violated the law.

The said activity is compulsory to the parolees and probationers as it is part of their probation, otherwise, their probation will be revoked and they will be detained again.

As an alternative for those unable to join the Brigada Eskwela, the MCPPO offers Therapeutic Community Modality Training, a rehabilitation-centered program aimed at instilling discipline and self-awareness. The office is also developing a formal rehabilitation program, complete with learning modules, to better support the reintegration process.  — Giane Kate Pilapil, CNU intern (FREEMAN)