MALAYBALAY CITY — The city government here is preparing for the jumpstart of skills training for illegal drug surrenderers this month, a program that would cost around PHP1.9 million.
Maida Daniot, City Local Government Operations Officer (CLGOO), on Friday relayed the recent announcement of Mayor Ignacio W. Zubiri that the skills training for those who surrendered in the city will commence this month up to December.
“The training will be held at the city TESDA training center in barangay Casisang. We are in the process of finalizing the list of interested drug surrenderers to avail the four skills that we offered,” she said.
The four skills training include manicure, small engine repair, electrical installation and massage.
“Beneficiaries for manicure and massage will undergo 10 days straight training. For electrical installation and small engine repair, they will undergo 20 straight days training,” she added.
The first training to commence is manicure and small engine repair. The city government has 30 slots for manicure and 50 for small engine repair. The two other skills training will follow.
In 2019, she said, they will offer skills trainings as part of the continuing program of the city government.
She added that each participant will be given a maximum of PHP150 daily travelling allowance depending on the distance from where they come from to the training center.
The CLGOO said the training is part of the stages of the Community Based Rehabilitation Program (CBRP) for drug surrenderers in the city implemented by the city government — a project which was launched on Dec. 7, 2016.
Daniot, however, earlier said the skills training is voluntary. It will be implemented in partnership with TESDA and the Department of Labor and Employment (DOLE), adding that beneficiaries will not be given livelihood assistance without attending the skills training program.
On August 25, the 12th batch composed of 208 individuals of the CBRP graduated in a ceremony held at Barangay 9 covered court in Malaybalay.
The last batch has brought the total to 2,647 out from 3,200 individuals or about 83 percent of drug surrenderers in Malaybalay City to complete their three-week CBRP since 2017.
Daniot said based on record, more than 500 TokHang (Toktok Hangyo) responders have failed to avail the CBRP.
She said the CBRP initiated by the city government through the CLGO Office has been sustained.
Last year, 10 batches of drug surrenderers have completed the CBRP.
She said the community-based rehabilitation — a program held in the clustered barangays — is just one of the stages followed in the project.
“Rehabilitation program is needed for the individuals who are in the list. A barangay will not be declared drug free if not all of them will undergo the rehabilitation process. And of course the city cannot be declared drug free because of them,” Daniot said.
She also urged the graduates to totally abandon drugs in their life, stressing that they will continue to monitor the activities of the rehabilitation beneficiaries even if they already passed the community-based rehabilitation.
SPO3 Alexander Calma, Malaybalay City Police Station (MPCS) non-commissioned police community relations officer, said only Barangay 2 and Kulaman were declared drug-cleared out of the 46 barangays in the city.
Calma admitted that some drug surrenderrers that passed the community-based rehabilitation program have gone back to their “old ways”. (/PNA)
