ILOILO CITY — Some 35 students of the Caninguan National High School (CNHS) in Lambunao, Iloilo have received bicycles under the “Sikad Padulong sa Edukasyon (Sikadukasyon)” program of the non-governmental organization, Bike for the Philippines.
The recognition of Dr. Jesus Insilada as one of the top 10 finalists to the Varkey Foundation Global Teacher Prize 2018 has benefited the CNHS, where he serves as principal.
In a phone interview Wednesday afternoon, he said the school was highly recommended because of the video that was produced during the Global Teacher Prize where students had to walk for an hour or two going to school.
“According to the founder of the Bikes for the Philippines (Joel Uichico), we were the first (recipient) that did not go through the process. We did not apply. They chose us,” he said.
As a whole, the program aims to promote the return of the tradition of biking, education, environment and health, Insilada said.
Initially, 35 bikes were turned over to student-recipients after the one-week seminar, “Bicycle Safety Riding Training Maintenance and Repair”, on Aug. 7-13, that was facilitated by Uichico, service manager Chilva Cimagala and resident mechanic Jake Palijado. Five bicycles were also given to the school’s bike coordinators.
Yvonne C. Caro, one of the bike coordinators of the CNHS, said the student-recipients were from barangays Sagcup, Hipgos, Bontoc, Caguisanan, and Buwang, all remote villages in Lambunao town.
Supposedly, 102 students have qualified but it was decided that they start with just a few recipients, she said.
“At the start of the training, 19 students didn’t know how to ride the bike. But after two days, they were able to master it and we even had a road test up to the town’s poblacion,” she said.
Insilada said the donor can give them even up to 300 bicycles but it would be better to start with a small number.
“The program will not end with the dole-out of bikes but it is just a start. We have to sit down and plan for activities aside from using the bike as a mode of transportation in going to school,” he said.
Recipients were chosen in coordination with class advisers. Their houses should not be less than 3 km. from the school, the monthly family income should not be more than PHP5,000, and they should have no means of transportation.
They also looked at the character of the recipient because they wanted to create a model of a poor but deserving student.
“They should know that they have a responsibility over the bicycle,” he emphasized.
Their usage will be properly monitored as well as, whether or not indeed their academic performance has improved or the issues on absenteeism and tardiness were addressed.
Nonetheless, Insilada said that student-recipients have inspiring stories. Some were already contemplating on stopping because they found the daily grind of walking to and from school difficult. “Each one of them has an inspiring story,” he said.
Grade 12 student, Jennel Caserial, 22, said he was very grateful that he and his two other siblings enrolled in Grades 10 and 8 were chosen as recipients.
He related that every day, they used to walk 5 km. to 6 km. and cross one river in going to school. They live in Barangay Buwang.
With the three of them having bicycles, they could cut their travel time into just 30 minutes from the previous one hour-walk.
Meanwhile, Grade 9 Cherry Ferly Mae Lastimoso and her two other siblings who are in Grades 9 and 7 are also recipients of a bike each.
She said the bicycles will be a great help because they live 7 km. away from the school. They are from Barangay Bontoc.
With a father who is a laborer and a stay-at-home mother, raising PHP120 a day for the minimum fare of the three children in going to school is really a burden.
“I am very grateful because with these bikes, we hope to be able to finish our schooling,” she said in the vernacular.
The bicycles were formally turned over by the Bike for the Philippines to their recipients in the presence of the school’s teaching staff, students, parents, barangay officials of Caninguan, local government officials of Lambunao and representatives of the Department of Education on Tuesday.
CNHS is the first school-recipient of the Sikadukasyon program in Western Visayas with 13 female and 22 male students as beneficiaries.
The bicycles came from the Bike for the World that is based in the United States and were delivered to the Bike for the Philippines.
This month, the bicycles were shipped from Manila to CNHS with the Iloilo provincial government footing the bill for the freight. (Perla Lena/PNA)
