A total of 17 Persons Deprived of Liberty (PDLs) in the Bureau of Jail Management and Penology (BJMP) graduated through the Alternative Learning System (ALS) program of the Department of Education (DepEd) in Roxas City.
The graduates are composed of 13 males and four females.
Alias “Junior,” a 52-year-old inmate who graduated his elementary through ALS inside the Roxas City BJMP Male Dormitory, said that he was able to learn a lot of things inside the jail’s dormitory compared to when he was out of imprisonment.
Junior is also happy that despite his age, he was allowed to finish elementary school, thus, will use his new learning when he gets reintegrated into the community to make up for lost time with his children.
“Dako gid nga pasalamat ko sa BJMP kay wala gid sila nagpabaya nga mangin maayo kami, kag sa DepEd, dako man akon pagpasalamat kay na dugang-dugangan ang akon na bal-an (I am
grateful to the BJMP because they did not give up on us, also to the DepEd for the additional learnings that I was able to attain),” Junior added.
Alias “Bench,” a 51-year-old PDL, also expressed his thanks to the DepEd, Roxas City government, and BJMP for allowing him to have a better chance of having a good job when he finishes his sentence inside.
He also said that he plans to continue his studies and finish senior high school through ALS.
“Ang plano ko kay naka graduate ko diri, padayunon ko ang akon pag-eskwela kag tapuson ko ang akon senior high kay kung maka tapos ko dira, dako gid ini nga bulig sa akon kaugalingon. Pag gwa, makapangita ako sang maayo nga trabaho (I plan to continue my studies and I will finish senior high school because it will greatly help me in finding a better job once I am released from detention),” Bench added.
For his part, Roxas City mayor Ronnie Dadivas expressed support for the reformation program of DepEd that can help give back dignity and new life to the inmates.
“Pananglitan makaguwa na sila sa presohan, may ara sila sang bitbiton nga ihibalo kag sertipiko nga sarang ma-gamit sa pagpangita sang trabaho kag mangin mapinuslanon nga miyembro sang ila pamilya kag komunidad (Just in case they will get out from prison, they will have a certificate that they can use in finding a job to be a useful member to their family and in the society),” Dadivas added.
