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NCR, Philippines |
October - December 2007 |
Volume V, No.4 |
ISSN 1656-0620 |
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Provincial government leads Children’s Day celebration in Northern Samar
By Arlyn Cui-Tepace
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Catarman, Northern Samar – Many children of the province had the fun of their lives in the first Children’s Day celebration of Northern Samar on October 18, 2007 at the Ibabao Hall of the Capitol.
The activity centered on kids of the Home for Children and Adolescents (HCA) or more popularly known as the Lingap Center. Joining them in the merriment were 93 other children, mostly pre-school age, 7 and 8-year old kids of provincial government employees.
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The provincial government, through the support of Governor Raul Daza and the United Nations Children’s Fund (UNICEF), made the day festive with treats of ice cream, parlor games, raffle prizes, free breakfast and lunch. Vitamin A was also administered to children below 5 years old during the program. Dr. Mary Ann Avalon, provincial health officer, led the administration of the Vitamin A supplement. Vit. A is also being given to the rest of province’s children aged 4m years old below in a separate program of the provincial government and jointly sponsored by the Department of Health. Dubbed nationally as the Knock-out Tigdas Program, the program will run from October 15 to November 15 this year, along with measles vaccination and deworming.
During the Children’s Day event, Gov. Raul Daza expressed his conviction in the significance of the celebration to reflect on the value of our children.He expressed his administration’s support for programs for children not only in October where the whole country celebrates children’s month, but all year round. “Children are our greatest wealth since they are the ones to hold the reins of our provinces and also our country’s future. So, we should all nurture them,” Daza said.
The program also included the ceremonial distribution of early childhood care and development (ECCD) materials, courtesy of UNICEF, to representatives of the province’s different municipalities. Municipal social welfare and development officers from the towns of Mondragon, Bobon, Allen and Catarman received the ECCD package consisting of books and other reading materials, pencils, coloring pens, toys, musical instruments, plastic mats, cassette recorder and many others.
The local celebration of the Children’s Day is authorized by Ordinance No. 15 or the Northern Samar Children’s Welfare Code. The same law, enacted by the Sangguniang Panlalawigan on September 3, 2006, declared the month of October as Children’s Month for the conduct of child-focused activities that promote the rights of Filipino children. |
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