By Angeline Valencia
TAGBILARAN CITY, Bohol, Aug. 30 (PNA) — Years had passed since the start of the implementation of the Juvenile Justice law in the middle of 2006, but it is only now that the city social workers received positive response from concerned entities on the proposed establishment of a youth rehabilitation center to be called “Paglaum Center”.
Cerina Sia, the officer-in-charge of the City Social Welfare and Development Office, pointed out that Republic Act 9344 or the Juvenile Justice and Welfare Act of 2006 requires every local government unit to establish a rehabilitation center for children in conflict with law.
It is clearly stated in the scope of RA 9344 that the law “shall cover the different stages involving children at risk and children in conflict with the law from prevention to rehabilitation and reintegration”.
This makes the establishment of a rehabilitation center necessary.
On the increasing number of crimes involving minors, Sia said establishing a rehabilitation center is the only solution.
It has been long overdue. The past city administrations should have started establishing a rehabilitation center since the Juvenile Justice Law took effect in 2006 like what the other local government units in Cebu had done, according to Sia.
In fact, the recently arrested habitual juvenile offender who has been implicated in multiple carnapping in Tagbilaran City has to be ferried outside Bohol, specifically to Argao in Cebu where a rehabilitation facility is available.
Sia confirmed that the recently arrested minor tagged in carnapping committed his first offense when he was still 14 years old and repeated the same crime several times everytime he could escape the custody of the CSWD until the recent arrest last week.
The Paglaum Center that the CSWD proposed will provide skills training, sports facilities and other personality enhancement tools to ensure that a juvenile delinquent will be reformed into a law-abiding citizen and useful individual the moment he steps out and reintegrates into the community.
Guidance counselors will also be hired to assist in the reformation of the youth offenders.
By now, they finally identified a source of funds for the construction of the building and had also found a conducive site for the project.
Sia admitted the absence of a rehabilitation center made it difficult for the CSWD to implement RA 9344, because their office is not conducive to undertake exercises that would reform the youth offenders.
Oftentimes, the youth offenders turned over to them by the city police could easily escape and go back to the streets until they become habitual offenders.
The Governor’s Office, through the SEEM (Social, Economic and Environment Management) Cluster under Liza Quirog, is also extending support to the plan of establishing the Paglaum Center in the city. (PNA)