TWENTY-SEVEN street children were recovered by City Hall’s Department of Social Welfare and Services (DSWS) from various areas in Cebu City last Friday.
The children were found begging from passersby in front of the Robinson Mall in Fuente Osmeña, Gaisano South in Colon, and Basilica del Sto. Niño.
DSWS chief Esther Concha said the children were aged 15 years old and below.
“Some of them also haven’t gone home to their parents. Some of them also do scavenging anywhere in Cebu City,” Concha said. The 27 street children were profiled, fed and treated to a movie marathon by DSWS staff.
Their parents are mostly unemployed while others work as jeepney dispatchers and don’t have a stable income.
Concha said some of these children are brothers and sisters. The youngest is a two-year-old girl.
She and two boys don’t have parents, Concha said. Three children are now under DSWS custody and will be adopted by a community scout.
The other 24 children were claimed by their parents on the same day.
“We told them (parents) if we would found out and rescue their children again then we would take legal actions against them,” Concha said.
Related Stories: