The recent graft charges involving the P427 million school feeding program of the Department of Education (DEP-ED) caught the ire of child rights advocates, who warned that this issue is beyond  “forum shopping and business rivalry” as what Secretary Jesli Lapuz  wants to insinuate.

 

“The point here is aside from overpricing, the supplied noodles are lacking in the basic nutrients our school children need. For this alone, Secretary Jesli Lapuz and other DEP-ED officials should be held accountable for promoting band-aid and ill-conceived programs that make use of taxpayers’ hard-earned” said Ms. Sophia Garduce, spokesperson of Salinlahi Alliance for Children’s Concerns.

 

“Instead of helping eradicate malnutrition among primary school age children, this feeding program drains the government of much-needed funds that could be used to seriously address the issue of malnutrition. It also turns the Dep-Ed into the primary mis-educator of our children in what constitutes a nutritious meal,” Garduce added.

 

Salinlahi also noted that the feeding program of the DEP-ED since 2004 should also be investigated. “It is alarming that there are claims that said supplier of noodles for the program is not registered with BFAD, and yet, it has operated since 2004.”   The group was also appalled over the immediate cancellation of the project without a conclusion as to who should be made accountable for this mess. “Secretary Lapuz dismisses this scam without going into the bottom of it. We are led to believe that there is a whitewash in this case,” quipped Garduce.

 

The group challenged the DEP-ED to open all accounts pertaining to its feeding program and other programs related to children’s education, nutrition and health. “For transparency purposes, we urge the DEP-ED to make a public accounts of all of its spending regarding projects that are deemed beneficial to children’s rights and welfare, and let the taxpayers as well as parents of school children involved in the program judge for themselves whether these programs are truly beneficial to children,” Garduce said.

 

SALINLAHI also noted that with President Arroyo’s term of office approaching just one more year come June 30, we demand the administration to fully account how much or how little it has really invested on children, as she continuously boasts of the “BRIGHT CHILD” program. “This latest noodles scam in DEP-ED makes us doubt just how much this government has done for the future of our children. We are led to think that when child rights advocates measure what legacy GMA can lay claim to in promoting children’s rights and welfare, our answer would be corruption, human rights violations against children, increased number of child laborers and a whole gamut of rights violations,” Garduce ended. ###