The Cebu City government is eyeing to get a P10-million grant from the national government to continually improve the services for the street children in the city as part of Operation Gugma (Operation Love).
Acting Cebu City Mayor Margarita “Margot” Osmeña signed last Tuesday the Letter of Intent for the grant that was submitted to the Regional Juvenile Justice and Welfare Council (RJJWC) for approval by the national government.
Cebu City Task Force on Street Children (CCTFSC) program coordinator Redentor Betito said the grant will be helpful to sustain Operation Gugma’s programs in the city.
Operation Gugma is a joint initiative of CCTFSC and the Cebu City Police Office (CCPO) to help the street children improve their personal, spiritual and emotional well-being through various intervention programs.
The operation also seeks to provide aftercare services to children at risk and children in conflict with the law, among others.
“There are many street kids to be taken care of, and one of our challenges is shelter,” Betito said in Cebuano.
The grant is under Republic Act No. 10630, also known as “An Act Strengthening the Juvenile Justice System in the Philippines,” amending Republic Act No. 9344, otherwise known as the “Juvenile Justice and Welfare Act” of 2006 and appropriating funds thereof, which mandates local government units (LGUs) to establish a Bahay Pag-Asa.
Bahay Pag-Asa is a 24-hour, child-caring institution providing short-term residential care for children in conflict with the law who are above 15 but below 18 years old and are awaiting court disposition of their cases or transfer to other agencies or jurisdiction.
Under this law, the national government will shoulder P5 million for the construction of Bahay Pag-asa rehabilitation center, while the local government will provide a counterpart fund of P4 million.
Betito, in a phone interview, clarified that a memorandum was issued by RJJWC amending the P5-million grant to P10 million.
“I received a copy of the memorandum for the P10 million grant,” Betito said in Cebuano.
He also added that the approval of the grant may still take long because there are a lot of requirements needed, such as the comprehensive plan on juvenile justice.
Being a non-government organization (NGO), the CCTFSC mainly depends on their partners’ support to sustain their operation. One of the partners is the Children of Cebu Foundation, an organization managed by the city government. But Betito said they still lack funding despite receiving financial support from the foundation.
“I am hoping that the administration of Mayor Tommy (Osmeña) will allocate a budget for our task force,” he said in Cebuano. /UP Cebu Intern Amy A. Macalinao