P176.4 million new public classrooms turned over to DavOr’s typhoon-hit areas

MATI CITY, Davao Oriental, July 30 – The Department of Education and Department of Public Works and Highways turned over an initial of 204 new classrooms to public elementary and high schools in the typhoon-hit towns of Baganga and Cateel.

Teachers and students said these new classrooms symbolize new hope and new beginning for the education sector here that was badly battered after typhoon Pablo ‘washed out’ many of their school buildings in 2012.

Alberto Cainghug, assistant engineer of the DPWH District Office, said the national government had earmarked a total of P558 million for the construction 590 classrooms required in the entire first district, which already include the 204 recently turned over classrooms.

“These (new classrooms) answer the long-pressing problem on the shortage of schoolrooms in the disaster-hit areas,” said first district representative, Congressman Nelson Dayanghirang, who helped usher the release of funds for these new infrastructures.

Implemented by the DPWH, the funding was sourced out from the Typhoon Pablo rehabilitation fund, which was coursed through DepEd.

Amidst the massive rehabilitation efforts of the government, Dayanghirang noted the significant increase in the number of schools at present compared to what schools had before the disaster.

Aside from that, he also reported that these new buildings were constructed and designed to be typhoon-resistant and can sustain strong winds of up to 250 kph.

“This modification is important as we realize schools are the primary refuge of families during calamities,” he said.

Meanwhile, Governor Corazon N. Malanyaon congratulated the teachers and students headed by DepEd Assistant Schools Division Superintendent Feliciano Tamundong, Jr., saying that the new classrooms would hopefully give boost to the education sector.

Malanyaon commended the efforts of the national and local government, along with the agencies involved for their quick interventions in the rehabilitation of schools, which is also consistent to the province’s Building Back Better Agenda.

“We now see a proliferation of infrastructures—school buildings, housing units, and government facilities. This is an indicator how fast our recovery is,” stated the governor during the turnover and blessing ceremonies.

Malanyaon said these developments have been attributed to the convergence of all agencies, which are complementing each other’s resources in order to accomplish more in a very short period of time. (PIO-DO/K. Deloso)