Dipolog jail holds graduation exercises for its 36 detainees

By Alfonso T. Ruda

Monday 2nd of July 2012

DIPOLOG CITY, JULY 2 (PIA) -- For the first time in the history of the local jail, a graduation was held inside the Dipolog City Jail complex at Barangay Upper Dicayas, Dipolog City.

The Department of Education (DepEd) held the graduation exercises for the 36 detainees, seven males and 29 females, who passed the Accreditation and Equivalency Test of the Bureau of Alternative Learning System (BALS), on June 28.

Out of this number, 10 are in the elementary level and 26 are in the secondary level.

According to city jail warden, Jail Chief Insp. Allan Vargas, 80 percent of the graduates, aged 19 to 40 years old were involved in illegal drugs or drug-related cases.

Aside from Catalina S. Barinaga, Dipolog City Schools Division BALS coordinator and Vargas, other personalities who witnessed the graduation included Ella Grace Tagupa, Dipolog City Schools Division Science supervisor, who represented City Division Supt. Victorina Perez; BALS coordinators; mobile teachers; friends and relatives of the inmates and residents of the city jail.

Tagupa challenged the graduates to take advantage of the programs of DepEd purposely for the so-called depressed, deprived, and under-privileged, to realize their dreams of finishing their studies and become productive members of the society.

Vargas, in his speech, reminded graduates to pursue their studies, if they intend to do so, once they get out of prison.

In response, Myrna Montefalcon and Antonio Montes Jr., elementary and secondary graduates respectively, expressed their heartfelt thanks to DepEd and ALS implementers for the program and the all-out support and patience of the mobile teachers during the whole duration of their studies.

Montefalcon and Montes promised to be reformed persons once they return to go mainstream.(JPA/ATR-PI A9, Zambo Norte)